Kingdom Hearts: A Warrior's Bond
by Princess Mew Mew
Summary: ADOPTED from Dark Maiden95. After Sora is wounded in a Heartless invasion, Mickey sends a mysterious girl to aid him and his friends on their quest. But why does he feel like he knows her? Meanwhile an old enemy hunts the Keyblade Master...
1. Chapter 1

I don't own Kingdom Hearts.

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Chapter One

Heartless Attack

Sora stood on the shores of Destiny Islands, the midnight wind tugging his spiky chestnut brown hair away from his moon dusted face, eyes that could rival even the most perfect sapphires stared out over the rolling sea as golden sand twisted over his bare feet. A sight to behold within the mind, black and silver twisted together in a swirling storm, the silver moon rising up over a darkened horizon, diamond stars flickering like eyes upon the fifteen-year-old Keyblade Master.

Although despite the blissful peace of the night, he was wide awake, he couldn't sleep, not when his thoughts were troubled, and confused by the letter King Mickey had sent that sunset.

"_Dear Sora, Riku and Kairi_

_I am sorry to be the bearer of bad news, especially so soon after your return home a few days ago, but I'm afraid that an evil power is at work. It's not Maleficent, or Xenmas. But it's strangely familiar, I just can't put my finger on it. However, I have a strong feeling that gathering the seven Princesses of Heart can somehow put an end to this evil. But, sadly, we will need more than just the Princesses. We will also need their leader. I would like you all to come to Disney Castle first thing tomorrow. I will explain everything then._

_Again, I apologise_

_Sincerely_

_King Mickey"_

But that wasn't the only thing keeping him awake. Slowly Sora pulled something out of his trouser pocket, a small stone barely the size of the palm of his hand, as blue as an ocean of sapphires. He ran his fingers over the satin texture, watching the pale light of the moon make it sparkle beneath its touch. It was shaped like half of a crown, identical in shape to the silver one around his neck, where it should have been whole a faint glow erupted through its casing, a tiny heart waiting to be whole again, returned to the side of its twin.

All his life he had carried the little stone, a secret from all, he could never part with it, he'd had it ever since he was a small infant, along with his necklace. He had asked his mother time and again what it was, but she never gave an answer and would just gaze up at the sky, as though she wanted to avoid the whole thing. Sora figured that the other half was probably buried somewhere on the island, he vowed that one day he would find it.

He was immediately brought out of his thoughts when he heard a pair of soft, padding footsteps coming towards him. Quickly he tucked the stone back into his pocket. A girl's voice broke through the silence around him.

"Sora, what are you doing out here? It's really late!"

Sora turned around and was greeted with a familiar face.

"Oh, hey Kairi."

Kairi's dark red hair swung around her shoulders in the ocean breeze, eyes matching shining as clearly as blue gemstones stared back into him, alit with stars. She didn't have her pyjamas on either.

"Couldn't sleep. You?"

Sora nodded silently, his eyes cast back over to the horizon, his hand absently stroked over his pendant.

"I just can't believe there's a new evil out there already. I mean, we just took out Maleficent and Xenmas! Who else is out there?"

The fifteen-year-old girl shrugged her shoulders, a smile graced her lips as she stepped slightly closer to the boy.

"Who knows?" She stepped in front of him and wrapped her arms around his shoulders, her face snuggled into his chest, causing him to blush from the sudden closeness. "King Mickey says that it's a familiar darkness, maybe it's someone we've encountered before."

Sora nodded his head.

"Maybe, but who could it be?" he asked. "That's what I'm wondering."

Kairi withdrew her embrace and threaded her hand through his.

"Riku's at the Secret Place. He couldn't sleep either. He sent me to come get you," she explained.

With those words the two of them made their way off the beach.

~()~

Sora pushed the rock door to the Secret Place over the entrance as he and Kairi entered. Leaning against the chalk-scrawled wall was their sixteen, silver-haired friend, pale green eyes hidden beneath his bangs. They made their way over to him and Sora smiled.

"So you couldn't sleep either, Riku?" he asked.

Riku shook his head.

"No. But it's not the letter that's bothering me. It's something else, something here on the island. The scent of darkness is really strong."

The three of them fell silent for a few moments before Kairi spoke up.

"I feel it too. A dark presence...like it's watching us..." her voice trailed off. Her blood ran cold, a shiver shook her spine. She didn't know what the presence was, but all that could be said was it was something bad.

Sora stepped back towards the entrance and looked at them over his shoulder.

"Whatever it is, it's here on the island," he stated. "We have to check it out."

~()~

After nearly an hour of searching, there was not a single trace of Heartless.

"We've searched the entire island but there's nothing, maybe we're just imagining things." Kairi suggested, although she wasn't convinced, nor were the boys.

"We might as well turn in for the night." Riku said. "We're gonna need our rest for the new quest."

But as soon as he closed his mouth an ominous wind blew across the island, nearly knocking them over from its sheer force. Sora managed to stand against the force of the wind and set himself in a fighting stance.

"What's going on?" he yelled over the gusts.

As if answering his question, dozens of Heartless came into view, amber eyes glowing in endless depths of black shadows. Many of them gripped some kind of weapon in their claws.

"Heartless!" Kairi shouted.

"We have to get rid of them!" Sora commanded.

In a flash of light the Ultima Weapon appeared in his hand, by far his most powerful of the key chains he had collected over the course of his travels. He quickly leapt forward and started his strike upon the invaders. Riku quickly followed, Way of Dawn in hand, and lunged at his attackers. Kairi followed their example and summoned her own Keyblade. During their battle against Organisation XIII and training upon their return to the island, she had learned how to defend herself, along with a few basic spells.

Almost immediately the Keybladers could tell there was something different about the Heartless, they were stronger, faster, far more vicious than any other they had faced. Never before had any kind of Heartless or non-human Nobody exhibited that level of strength.

Riku crouched down on one knee, gasping for breath as he watched the swarm of darkness edge closer and closer; he was exhausted, but his opponents weren't planning on backing down. In one last ditch attempt he released his power.

"Dark Firaga!" he shouted as an enormous blast of white engulfed his opponents, as well as Sora and Kairi's.

Only one Heartless remained, battling Sora as though its life depended on it, it wielded a great sword and wore a red bandana around its head, empty eye sockets bulging beneath it. Sora set himself in a defensive stance, sweat ran down his forehead and his breathing heavy, he didn't know how much more he could take.

_Come on...! Just a little bit longer...! _He shouted mentally.

~()~

Suddenly more Heartless emerged from black pools, surrounding the trio, their claws scratched the sand beneath them and their eyes glinted like amber, a malicious smirk on their lips as vicious snarls hungered for their prize. Riku threw a look over his shoulder, his eyes widened at the sight.

"You have gotta be kidding me!" he cried.

Quickly he dashed off and lashed out at them.

_So many of them...and they're so strong! Why are they here? _Sora thought anxiously, looking around him as he fought off every attacker that came his way. Fatigue was beginning to set in, his eyes drooped but he continued to fight on, though he clearly was getting exhausted, it wouldn't be much longer before he would have to stop.

"Sora, look out!" he heard Riku shout, desperation laced into his voice, along with something he wouldn't associate with his older friend, fear.

He only had time to look up as the sword-wielding Heartless he was battling before slashed him across the chest with immense force. Sora cried out in pain as he fell backwards, clutching his wound in agony. His heart raced and his head thudded, but that only made the scarlet blood that slid through his fingers come faster and faster. Through his torn shirt a long deep gash ran from his right shoulder down to his left hip. Sora began to feel lightheaded, feeling the crimson liquid leave his body in a bloody waterfall, staining him without remorse in his own life.

Another flash of light entered his eyes, Riku had used another Dark Firaga to wipe out the remaining Heartless. The next thing he knew his friends were kneeling over him.

"Sora? Sora, can you hear me? Hang in there!" Riku asked.

Sora closed his eyes, his breathing slowed. A faint crack rippled in his ears before he became still, unheard by the others.

The sixteen-year-old gently shook him, attempting to wake him and bring him back to the world of the living. When Sora didn't stir, Riku felt a sense of fear fill him, he was unconscious.

"We have to take him to Disney Castle!" Kairi cried out, her hand resting against his cheek.

She watched as Riku picked him up in strong arms and nodded his head.

"Contact King Mickey right now. Tell him it's an emergency!" he ordered.

Kairi quickly obeyed, using her magic as a Princess of Heart to send out a message for help. Right now, King Mickey was Sora's only hope.

~()~

What do you think? I hope I've done your story justice Dark Maiden85.

Please R&R


	2. Chapter 2

I don't own Kingdom Hearts

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Chapter Two

Deja Vu

A short time later, a bright orange Gummi Ship landed on the beach, its engines ceased and its exit opened. Its three occupants quickly stepped on the sands of the island and rushed towards the distressed teens. Donald Duck and Goofy, King Mickey's most trusted staff and friends were two of the pilots.

The third was a girl about Sora and Kairi's age. She had long brown hair down to her shoulders and brilliant blue eyes, resembling sapphires as they glimmered in the light of the moon. She wore a black tank top under a black jacket with an unzipped yellow zipper. The hood and one pocket were outlined with red, while the other pocket was edged in yellow. She wore thin black Capri pants with red and yellow streaks on the sides like racing stripes. Her shoes were black sneakers with a fine white trim. Around her neck was a black string with a silver crown exactly like Sora's. Her earrings were sapphires to match her eyes. Her hair was pulled back into a ponytail by a black band, similar to a scarf as it blew lightly in the breeze.

"Riku, Kairi!" Goofy called as the trio approached.

Riku and Kairi were sitting on the beach waiting for help to arrive from Disney Castle. Sora's unconscious form was stretched beside them, his head resting on Kairi's lap. The girl ran her fingers over his cheek, tears threatening to spill through her lashes.

"Donald, Goofy!" Kairi cried, wiping the tears away. Carefully she got to her feet, making sure not to disturb Sora's wounded chest with her movement.

"The king sent us to get you," Donald said. "We gotta get him outta here right now!"

"Can't you cure him with your magic?" Riku asked.

Donald paused. He hadn't thought of that.

"Curaga!" He cried after pulling out his wand. But nothing happened. Not even a single leaf fell to aid the injured Keybearer.

"Curaga!" He tried again. Still nothing. "Why won't it work?" the court wizard asked with a worried voice.

"We can worry about that later," Kairi said, moving Sora's head and standing up. "Right now we have to help Sora!"

But the other girl wasn't paying attention at all to what the others were saying. Her eyes were locked on Sora. He looked so much like her. She couldn't deny the worry she felt seeing him in this condition. All the blood slipping away from his body, it was like watching her own blood spill into darkness. She tilted her head slightly, a sense of confusion filling her. For some reason, unknown to her, she cared very much for him even though she had never seen him in her life. It was like she loved him in a non-romantic way.

Like a brother.

"Zelda, come on! We gotta get back to the castle!" Donald squawked at the girl, snapping her out of her thoughts.

"O-oh! Coming!" Zelda cried, rushing to catch up with the others.

Riku offered his hand to help her into the ship. The moment their hands touched it was like electricity running through their bodies, their eyes met but they said nothing. Quickly shaking away the thoughts Zelda climbed in and they took off.

~()~

Sora looked around. He had no idea where he was. Except for some sand, everything was entirely black. Cold, empty, shivers ran down his spine as everything stood still. He glanced around him but couldn't see a thing. But then, something caught his eye. It was a girl who looked about his age. Sora looked her over for a moment. She looked so familiar and so much like him. The similarity between them was like looking in a mirror. Sora just couldn't remember where he'd seen her. She looked at him as if she were trying to tell him something.

"Sora," she called, her voice echoing in the darkness.

Sora just knew he had heard her voice too. But where? He just didn't know. The girl reached out her hand.

"Sora," she called again, "please remember..."

~()~

Sora gasped quietly as his eyes shot open. He tried to sit up, but the pain in his chest refused to let him. A grunt of pain escaped his lips and put his hand to the wound. He looked down to see that his shirt was gone and his wound had been carefully but properly dressed with a white bandage. There was little red from the inside, telling Sora that the bandage had recently been changed.

As the pain subsided he looked around the room, with a strong sense of déjà vu. The floor was covered with a soft burgundy carpet and the walls were a light red with various pictures hanging from them. One picture in particular caught his eye. It was the picture of a young brown haired woman with sapphire blue eyes, likely in her late twenties to early thirties, lying in the very bed Sora was lying in at that instant. She held two babies in her arms, a boy and a girl with eyes and hair matching her own. Her smile was tired, but she looked like she had never been happier. Around the girl's neck was a black string while the boy had a silver chain, he couldn't tell what was hanging from them, only that they were silver. In the hands of the baby boy was a dark blue jewel, clutched so tightly it was almost impossible to see. The woman seemed very familiar to him, almost as familiar as the girl in his dream, but he just couldn't put his finger on it.

The comforter on the bed was a striped mix of the wall and carpet, the darker red streaks containing light red diamonds. There was a wooden chair in the left-hand corner by the door and two cradles against the left wall that looked like they hadn't been touched in ages. They were dusty and their colour had drastically faded over the years, if there had been any to begin with. One was a soft pink; the other was white with a subtle shade of blue.

_I've been in this room before,_ Sora thought. _I know I have! But when?_

~()~

Suddenly, the door opened, revealing Queen Minnie Mouse, holding Sora's shirt.

"Sora, you're awake!" Relief was evident in her voice. "We were all so worried!"

"Yeah, I'm awake," Sora replied, not knowing what else to say.

_So, I'm at Disney Castle,_ he thought. "You said 'we'. Are my friends here?"

"Yes," Minnie nodded, handing Sora his shirt. "Riku and Kairi are here, as well as someone the king and I would like you to meet. Do you think you have the strength to walk?"

Sora nodded silently and smiled.

"Good," Minnie smiled. "Come with me."

Sora put his shirt on with some pain, but he was able to get it on without too much difficulty and followed the queen out of the room, deciding not to tell her about the dream or the familiarity of the room, he decided to figure it out for himself.

~()~

Sora followed the queen to a large sitting room. Everyone turned when the door opened and hurried over.

"Oh, Sora! I'm so glad you're okay!" Kairi cried as threw her arms around his neck, causing him to wince in pain. He blushed violently and returned the embrace, holding her closely around the waist.

Riku slowly made his way over to them, a hand rubbed the back of his neck nervously.

"Sorry I couldn't get rid of that one Heartless," he apologised, looking ashamed.

Sora broke the embrace with Kairi and gave him an understanding smile.

"Hey, it's not your fault. You used all your energy to get rid of the rest. I'm surprised you didn't fall over right there!"

Then, a girl walked up beside Riku that Sora didn't recognize. Or did he? Sora was suddenly hit with realization that this was the girl from his dream! He stared at her, examining her, trying to figure out where else he'd seen her. She stared at him, apparently trying to do the same. He had her eyes and hair colour, even her confused face! The similarity was astonishing, right down to the finest detail, almost impossible.

"Sora, are you feeling all right?" King Mickey's voice rang out, bringing everybody out of their thoughts. Sora looked down at the king and nodded.

"Since you're all here, I guess I might as well tell you, Riku, and Kairi about what's going on."

Sora, Riku, and Kairi tensed, preparing for the worst. Donald and Goofy stood against one wall, waiting for the king to explain. Mickey sighed.

"The day you three returned home, I detected a familiar dark force gaining power. It was very similar to the feeling I had when I sensed the Organization at work, but not exactly the same," Mickey said. "It had the same feeling as the members we met, like Axel and Xemnas, but it wasn't exactly the same. I have reason to believe that it's another member that we didn't know about."

"Another member," Sora repeated. He had been having strange dreams about a man in an Organization cloak, but he just couldn't remember who he was. The man had ocean-blue eyes and shoulder length hair that was a light pink. Sora knew he had seen this member before, but he couldn't remember where or who he was.

"I have a feeling the gathering the seven Princesses of Heart can put a stop to this force before it gets out of hand," Mickey said, "but sadly there is one other that we must find."

"One other?" Zelda asked. "Who is that?"

"That's the thing." Mickey replied sadly. "We don't know who it is." He looked up again. "Have any of you ever heard of the Prince of Heart?"

The four teens shook their heads, surprised. Nobody, not the other six Princesses, Donald or Goofy, the queen or king had ever mentioned anything about a Prince of Heart.

"You all know that there are seven Princesses of Heart. Kairi is one of them." Minnie explained, her answer being a nod from the four teens. "There is also one Prince of Heart, one male with a pure heart, the one destined to be the leader of the seven Princesses. He wields the true Keyblade, the most powerful Keyblade of all."

Sora looked a little sad hearing this. He didn't have a pure heart. The fact that he had become a Heartless and had a Nobody proved this. He was the Keyblade Master, but now he was beginning to have doubts. Had Riku been right in Hollow Bastion, saying that Sora was only the delivery boy?

"My task for you four is to locate the Prince of Heart and gather the other six Princesses of Heart," Mickey said with determination. "Maybe we can put a stop to this before it gets too powerful!"

"Wait, us four?" Riku looked confused.

"Oh, sorry! I got so caught up in explaining the new quest, that I didn't even introduce Zelda!" Mickey chuckled. "Riku and Kairi have already met her. Sora, this is Zelda. She's gonna be helping you guys find the Prince of Heart!" Zelda and Sora exchanged warm smiles and shook hands, noticing that the other had an eerily similar smile.

"Are Donald and Goofy coming too?" Sora asked, smiling at his long-time friends.

"Of course!" Goofy cried happily. "You don't think we'd pass up an adventure with our buddy, do ya?"

"We wanna get in on the action too!" Donald said with his confident smirk.

Sora smiled, feeling relieved that all his friends would be there to help him. He then turned back to Zelda.

"You ready?" Zelda nodded.

"Yeah, let's go!"

~()~

Please R&R


	3. Chapter 3

I don't own Kingdom Hearts

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Chapter Three

Arrival in Hollow Bastion

Once again, Sora found himself in a place he didn't recognize, but at the same time, everything seemed so familiar, like he had been there before.

He was inside a white room, on the top floor of a castle.

_What is this place?_ He asked himself. _I've been here! But what is it?_ Suddenly, the man appeared again, his light pink hair down to his shoulders was layered. In his hand was a giant green and pink scythe and small rose petals flew around him.

"_Who are you?_" Sora wanted to ask. But his voice wouldn't work when his mouth opened, like it was lodged in his throat, frozen and trapped.

Suddenly, a woman with golden-blonde hair with two 'antennas' and the same black cloak appeared and knocked him back with four of the eight knives between her fingers in both hands. She was familiar too, but again, Sora couldn't remember who she was. The last thing he saw was the man swinging a wave of darkness and flower petals from his scythe towards him.

~()~

Sora abruptly woke up, eyes snapped open violently and cold sweat beading down his body. His chest heaved with unsteady breaths as he tried to gather his thoughts. That was the first time he'd actually had a nightmare about the man in the Organization coat. It was the first dream he'd been in that room and seen the woman too. Sora placed his head in his hand, trying to calm down enough to go to sleep.

The group had boarded the Gummi Ship earlier that night. Luckily there had been a place for everyone to sleep in the back. Sora looked around the small room to find Zelda still sound asleep. He smiled at how peaceful she looked. He still wondered why he felt he had seen her before. Finally deciding not to think anything more of it, he fell asleep again. Although his dreams still remained occupied by the man in the Organisation coat.

"We're here!" Kairi cried happily as everyone stepped out of the Gummi Ship.

Zelda looked like she might cry, small tears were forming in between her eyelashes and she kept rubbing the back of her hand against her eyes to try and fend them off.

"Radiant Garden," Sora smiled. "Let's go see how Leon and the others are doing. They should probably meet Zelda too."

Hearing her name, Zelda snapped out of her thoughts and put on a straight face.

"Okay, let's go."

~()~

No one was aware that from the top of a tall building, they were being watched by a teenage girl, her face covered by the hood of her black coat. The zipper of the familiar coat was down just above her knees and around the chest area; it had the same small chains. Under the hood, layered pitch black hair was visible by her chin and a little past her shoulders, as were her nose and a mouth, open slightly with surprise, if her eyes had been visible, they would likely have been wide with surprise as well. After a moment, the girl vanished into a Corridor of Darkness.

~()~

"So what are Leon and the others like?" Zelda asked as they continued walking.

"They're part of the Hollow Bastion Restoration Committee," Goofy answered. "They've been tryin' to fix up Hollow Bastion after it was destroyed by Ansem."

"It looks like they've made some progress," Riku commented as he, Zelda and Kairi looked around.

Houses lined the paved streets and the marketplace was bustling with customers, the smell of food being made wafted through the air and moistened their mouths. A smile spread across Sora's face.

"Yeah, they've been working hard since our last visit," he agreed. "Let's just hope this 'new force' doesn't mess it all up again."

Suddenly, out of nowhere, Nobodies surrounded and approached the group. But these were a kind of Nobody that none of them had ever seen before. Their bodies were black and graceful, almost humanoid. But their eyes were stark white and the gray symbol was on their chests. On their heads were silver ponytail-like locks, similar to those sometimes seen on a knight's helmet and down their sides were shimmering silver lines, similar to the Dusk.

"What are these things?" Donald asked as one lunged at him, lightning strikes going left, right and centre.

"Who cares? We have to destroy them!" Sora cried as he, Kairi, and Riku summoned their Keyblades.

Zelda drew a sword that had a golden handle and a ruby in the centre of the handle. Quickly she set herself in a battle stance and lashed out.

In response, the strange Nobodies summoned weapons of their own in a shimmering puff of black smoke. Some of them had black swords, others had scythes. But they were all dangerous.

The group quickly found out that these Nobodies were skilled in combat too, even more so than any other Nobody they had encountered, except for Organization XIII. As soon as the Nobodies' weapons appeared, they lunged at their opponents with frightening speed. Sora barely managed to block a sword attack with his Keyblade and threw his attacker to the ground before engaging it in combat. Everyone else also began attacking their own challengers. Slash. Duck. Parry. Parry. Slash. Everywhere, it was the same thing. Vengeful and ruthless, it was almost impossible to find an opening. Luckily they did and soon the Nobodies' were dropping like flies.

Finally, all but one had been defeated: Riku's challenger.

But it caught everyone completely off guard when it dodged an attack from Way to Dawn and rammed into Sora, pinning him to the ground. The young Keyblader was too startled to defend himself as the thing hissed and looked deeply into his eyes. Sora couldn't help but shudder in fear, his breathed hitched and his blood ran cold. The Nobody dismissed its weapon and readied its sharp claws and fangs. Everyone was in stupor as they waited for it to deal its blow.

A voice quickly broke through the silence, shattering it like glass.

"NO! Get off of him!" Zelda screamed as she kicked the Nobody off of Sora and stabbed it through its chest. After squealing and writhing in pain for a few moments, the Nobody curled up into a foetal position and dissolved into nothingness. Sora sat up, still shaken by the surprise attack, but not seriously hurt.

"What _were_ those things?" Kairi asked as Sora stood up next to her.

"Night Warriors." Zelda replied calmly.

Everyone looked at her, confused.

"Those things are called Night Warriors. They're the most powerful Nobody there is except for the Organization. They can bite someone and poison their blood, tainting their heart with darkness and making them much more vulnerable to Heartless attacks. Very few people who are confronted by them survive," she explained.

"You've seen those things before?" Riku asked.

"No," she replied with a confused expression. "But I know everything about them. I don't understand. I just knew about them one day even though I'd never heard of them or seen one in my life."

"Well, maybe we'll find out why as we travel." Sora suggested, even though he didn't sound too sure.

~()~

In the shadows on the side of a building facing away from the group, the hooded girl in the Organization cloak was leaning against the wall with her arms folded and her foot on the wall. When she decided she'd heard enough, she allowed herself to be swallowed by a Corridor of Darkness.

The Corridor of Darkness dumped the hooded girl into a dark coloured room. In the centre stood a taller hooded figure with is back to her. Under his hood, layered hair, the colour of cherry blossoms could be seen by his shoulders.

"I see they managed to defeat your warriors," the man said in a deep, smooth voice. "And the new girl knew everything you, their mistress knows about them."

"It's no fault of mine," the girl replied in a completely monotone voice, portraying no emotion whatsoever.

"Of course not," the man replied, turning to face her and lowering his hood, revealing ocean-blue eyes. He approached the girl and placed his hand on her shoulder, giving her a small confident smirk. "You have done well, No. XIII. I have no doubt that you'll continue to do so. After all, you look just like her."

She looked up and through the shadows of her hood that hid her eyes, they became visible. Her cold, emotionless eyes were the colour of sapphires.

~()~

Sora and the others were about to continue walking when a girl's voice stopped them.

"Hey!" she called.

A teenage girl dressed in black with short black hair jumped down from a nearby ledge.

"Yuffie!" Donald cried, surprised to see her.

"Merlin said that you guys were in trouble and we came looking for you!"

Before anyone could ask the ninja who 'we' was, the figure of Leon appeared behind her.

"We were on our way to help, but it looks like you guys took care of it." Yuffie smiled.

"Radiant Garden's had a serious problem with Heartless and Nobodies." Leon added. "There are new kinds and they seem to be stronger than ever."

"The Heartless on the islands _were_ stronger than before…" Sora said to no one in particular and raised his hand to the place on his chest where the gash was, memories of that night flooding back with painful intensity.

"Come on. Everyone's back at Merlin's house." Yuffie said, motioning for everyone to follow her and Leon.

~()~

"Guys, we're back!" Yuffie called out. On the other side of the room stood Aerith, dressed in pink as usual, Cid at the computer, and Cloud leaning against the wall.

"Sora! Donald! Goofy!" Aerith cried, relief evident in her voice. "We heard that Nobodies were attacking and we got worried."

Sora gave her one of his famous grins.

"Don't worry. They were nothing we couldn't handle. How's the restoration going?"

"We've managed to restore about half of the castle," Leon replied. "But with more Heartless and Nobodies around, our progress has been slowing down. On top of that, we're running low on supplies."

"How about Zelda and I run down to the Market Place and get some supplies?" Sora offered.

He was still an honorary member of the Hollow Bastion Restoration Committee and wanted to help out in any way he could. Besides, he wanted to get to know Zelda. Maybe he would remember where he'd seen her if they talked.

"Zelda?" Yuffie seemed surprised and confused at the mention of her name. The Restoration Committee looked in Zelda's direction. The girl looked down and suddenly became interested in her feet, it was the only thing she could do to keep from bursting into tears.

"Is that you?" Aerith asked, approaching her and gently putting her hand on Zelda's shoulder.

Zelda didn't reply, afraid that if she did, she might start sobbing uncontrollably.

"Zelda, do you know them?" Sora asked with concern when Zelda didn't answer Aerith. She didn't answer him either, or even look up. The others looked at her with concern, Riku most of all.

"Zelda, I'm very sorry about what happened…"

Aerith was about to say something more, Sora could tell, but she had decided not to. Good move, too, because a single tear slid from Zelda's cheek. It might have been a lot worse had Aerith decided otherwise.

"We all missed you." Yuffie smiled in an effort to cheer Zelda up.

Although it didn't, Zelda looked at her with sad eyes, but a grateful smile.

"Why don't we head out?" Sora suggested. "It might give you some time to get it together."

Zelda turned to him and nodded.

"We'll be back!" he called as he and Zelda headed out the door.

~()~

There were a lot of things they needed to get, but thankfully the Market Place wasn't very crowded, which pleased Sora and Zelda. They had bought some food and supplies from the Moogle Shop and Item Shop. After a little more walking, they decided to take a rest on a nearby bench.

"So, did you know Aerith and the others?" Sora asked.

Part of him knew he probably shouldn't have asked that, but he wanted to know more about Zelda.

Zelda nodded. "Yes. They were my friends when I was living here. I lived here with my guardian Elizabeth Weller until I was about nine years old. But...one night...Heartless attacked this world. Leon and the others were able to finish them off, but not before one tried to take my heart. Elizabeth got in its way too fast for it to stop. But instead of taking her heart, it messed up and..."

Zelda's voice got shaky and she felt the tears coming back. Just when she thought she might lose it, Zelda felt Sora's hand on her shoulder, offering comfort.

"I see." Sora said, sorrow in his voice.

Wiping a tear away, Zelda continued. "Before Leon and the others could reach me, some guy in a black coat with long silver hair grabbed me and threw me into some kind of portal and I ended up in a different world. I've been living alone for quite a while."

"Xemnas." Sora growled and cursed the Nobody under his breath.

He couldn't believe that Xemnas would do something like that. It just made it more satisfying, knowing that he and Riku had killed Xemnas just days before.

"I've also been fighting the Heartless since that night." Zelda continued. "I ended up in a world called Traverse Town. Apparently, Aerith and the others were there too, but I never found that out until later, after they were gone. I found this sword and fought any Heartless I've come across, trying to avenge Elizabeth and destroy them for good."

_Wow._ Sora thought. _She's been through so much because of the Heartless and the Organization! No wonder she wants to destroy the Heartless so much. I bet she's glad the Organization's gone, too._

He turned his attention back to Zelda and let her continue

"But... one time... I thought the Heartless had finally gotten me, too." she confessed, looking down solemnly. "I saw a Neo Shadow attacking a woman and of course, I couldn't just stand there. I went to help, but it knocked me down before I could strike it. It ripped its claws into my chest and took my heart. I felt the darkness consuming me."

Sora listened intently. He knew the feeling of becoming a Heartless. His hand moved to his heart and clutched his crown pendant, memories of that day flooding back. The darkness surrounding him, clawing against him, attempting to rip open his chest and take away the last of the light in his heart. He looked back to Zelda and let her continue.

"But the Neo Shadow had knocked my sword away. While it was distracted, the lady grabbed my sword and killed it only to have a different kind of Heartless approach her. It was about to take her heart, but I rammed it away and attacked it. She just stood there, watching two Heartless tackle each other like football players," she laughed with a small smile. "I soon killed the other Heartless and approached her. She seemed scared at first, but she looked at my face and realized it was me. I expected her to kill me, but she knelt down and hugged me. She whispered 'thank you' in my ear... or whatever Shadow Heartless have, and I was covered in light. The next thing I knew, I had my body back."

"So, did you ever learn her name?" Sora asked.

Zelda nodded.

"Naoko was her name. I told her about everything that had happened to me and she took me in. I lived with her for about two years until she left for another world. I wanted to go with her, but she said no. I didn't understand why and I still don't. About two weeks later, I received a letter from King Mickey, telling me Naoko had been killed by a member of the Organization and that you had eliminated that member shortly after. I was so upset that I didn't leave the house for days and sometimes forgot to eat."

Sora couldn't believe what Zelda's past was like.

"Didn't you have any friends to help you through that?" he asked.

"Yes." Zelda replied. "They were upset too and we all helped each other. But I had basically given up on having any kind of family by then."

"But weren't you living at Disney Castle before we met?" Sora asked.

"Only for two days. The king and queen were very kind to me, as was everyone else, but I don't know if you'd call two days 'living'."

"True," he agreed. "I'm really sorry about your guardians. It sounds like you were very close to both of them."

"I was."

Zelda looked down again for a moment and her eyes began to well up. She turned back to Sora and drew him into a grateful embrace, being careful not to hurt his wounded chest.

"You're a really nice guy, Sora. I hope we'll be great friends."

She smiled at him warmly as they both pulled out of the embrace. "So, what's your life been like?" she asked.

She listened with great fascination as he told her about his life and both of his journeys. He told her about all of the worlds, what he had done there, and the friends he had made, including his life on the Destiny Islands and his friendship with Riku and Kairi.

"Wow. You've sure had a lot of fun, haven't you?" Zelda laughed. "Sounds like you're _really_ close to Kairi, too."

Sora noticed a teasing smirk on Zelda's face.

"I-I don't know what you're talking about!" he retorted, a scowl becoming clear on his face.

But from the way he couldn't look Zelda in the eyes and how madly he was blushing, Zelda knew he was lying.

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever you say, Mister Keyblade Master!" Zelda teased playfully. "Come on, we better head back."

Sora nodded and they stood up to head back for Merlin's house.

~()~

But once they had left the Market Place, Sora suddenly found himself yanked back into someone, an arm around his chest and four knives against his throat.

"Sora!" Zelda cried in horror and drew her sword. "Let him go!"

"Wow, how threatening. Stupid baby brat!"

Sora froze when he heard the familiar voice of his female captor. _No...It can't be..._ He thought. _She's the woman from my dream!_

~()~

Please R&R


	4. Chapter 4

I don't own Kingdom Hearts

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Chapter Four

Larxene

"Who are you?" Sora demanded, his body was prone, tense, anger pulsed through his painfully and shrieked to be released. His captor only pressed the knives down harder. He hissed in pain as small streams of blood crawled down his throat, his neck stained red in the brilliant liquid.

The woman gasped, obviously pretending to be offended.

"Why, Sora! You don't remember who I am?" She let out a sob, which he could immediately tell was fake, before her lips twisted into a smirk again. "Why, I can't BELIEVE you!"

"Cut the crap, already!" Sora shouted ruthlessly as he struggled to escape the woman's grasp. This only made her tighten her grip on him.

He realized that struggling wouldn't do him any good, the more he struggled, the tighter her grip would be on him, so he tried something else. With a sharp kick he hit her squarely in the knee, causing her to yelp in pain and release him. Sora joined Zelda and summoned his Keyblade, the Ultima Weapon. He gasped when he saw her face. She was the woman from his dream!

"Who are you?" he asked again, more ominously this time as the woman stood up, his eyes darkened to a deep sapphire. The woman looked at him and smirked, still rubbing her knee from the blow.

"Well, since you were smart enough to escape, I'll help you out. Now Sora, think very carefully," she said slowly. "Look deep into your heart."

...

Sora thought hard. Memories buried deep within his heart began to resurface. Lightning bolts, shattering the ground around him. His Keyblade, meeting her knives at rapid speed. The final moment he pierced through her chest and finished their battle.

"L...La...Lar...Lar...xene. Larxene!"

Larxene looked at him with a bored expression.

"Took you long enough!" she scoffed.

A smile crept across her face.

"That's right. Larxene is my name. You see, we've got some use for you." Larxene smirked at Sora, her hand extended to him. "So why don't you be a good little boy and come with me?"

_We?_ Sora pondered. _Who else is working with her?_

"I don't think so!" he shouted, preparing to attack with the Ultima Weapon. Zelda drew her long blade and also prepared to fight.

Larxene chuckled and shook her head.

"That is a really bad idea. Do you realize how easily I could slit your pathetic little throats?"

"We'd like to see you try!" Zelda retorted.

* * *

Larxene smirked as small bright lightning bolts surrounded the four knives in each of her gloved hands. She threw four of them straight at Zelda, who dodged just in time and lunged at Larxene, body bowed low as she ran through the bolts crashing around her, making herself a smaller target to their wrath.

Larxene responded by throwing lightning sparks at her attacker, with deadly accuracy. One hit Zelda in the shoulder and a couple slashed her legs. The girl screamed in pain and fell to the ground, blood beading slowly from her wounds. Larxene moved in and slashed Zelda's stomach a few times, she shrieked as the metal cut through her flesh.

Then, her attacker prepared for the kill, knives raised above her head and coming down fast, but Sora caught her off guard by attacking from behind. He pushed her away with his shoulder and sent her flying into the wall. She crashed into it with tremendous force and slumped onto the ground, breathing heavily from the ambush, but continued to fight against the Keyblade Master. Zelda finally struggled to her feet, only to nearly fall back to her knees. Sora kept Larxene busy long enough for Zelda to get a blow in. She struck Larxene across the back with her sword, leaving a long, deep gash that streamed brilliant red.

Finally, Larxene couldn't take it anymore. She cried out in pain and fell to her knees. Sora expected her to fade into blackness, but she never did. Instead, she smirked at her opponents.

"You're better than I thought you'd be," she laughed in a strained voice. "But next time, when HE comes after you, it won't be so easy."

* * *

When she said those words she was looking directly at Sora, sapphire eyes glared back at her before being she was engulfed by a Dark Corridor.

_HE? Who's HE?_ Sora thought to himself.

"What did she mean by that?" he asked out loud.

Zelda shrugged.

"Beats me. But did she hurt you?"

"No, I'm fine," he smiled at her, though he was concerned that she wasn't standing up straight. "We should probably get back to Merlin's house. Everybody's waiting."

Zelda smiled and nodded as Sora turned to walk back.

* * *

But he hadn't taken two steps before he heard Zelda gasp. He quickly spun around to see her on one knee, her arms wrapped around her stomach, eyes tightly closed.

"What's wrong?" Sora asked as he rushed back to her side. Zelda managed to open one eye and closed it again, her breathing was laboured.

"I don't know," she replied shakily. She lifted her shirt up so Sora could examine her stomach. He covered his mouth, horrified at the sight that glowered back at him.

There were burns and gashes on her stomach, some of which were bleeding profusely.

"How could she?" he seethed with anger as Zelda lowered her shirt again. Quickly Sora calmed himself and asked, "Can you walk?"

"I think so." Zelda replied as she tried to stand up, but fell back to her knees with a cry of pain.

"Here, let me help," he offered as he wrapped Zelda's arm around his shoulders and his arm around her waist, helping her stand. Zelda winced in pain, but was able to at least stand like this.

"Thanks, Sora," she thanked with a grateful smile as the two made their way back to Merlin's house.

~()~

* * *

"I wonder where Sora and Zelda are." Kairi said worriedly after a long period of silence. "It's been almost two hours!"

"Don't worry!" Yuffie quipped cheerfully. "I'm sure they just got busy talking and lost track of the time! They did just meet after all. You gotta give them some time to get to know each other!"

"Well, they better hurry back!" Donald squawked impatiently. "I'm hungry!"

"I asked them to get some food," Aerith explained, "so we'll have something soon."

...

A few moments later, the door swung open.

"We're back!" Sora called. Everyone looked shocked and worried when they saw Zelda.

"Oh my gosh! What happened?" Aerith cried as she and Riku approached the injured Zelda.

"Well, we ran into someone from the Organization, and I think the rest is pretty self-explanatory." Zelda replied, looking down at her stomach.

Riku took Zelda from Sora. "I'll take care of her," he said softly.

Sora nodded and explained the whole ordeal as Riku sat Zelda down and wrapped a bandage around her wounds.

"So the Organization is back." Kairi said with some worry in her voice.

"Seems like it." Sora replied. "But that's okay! No matter what they've got up their sleeves this time, we can handle 'em, right?"

"Yeah!" Everyone agreed.

"And I'll be there to help," the girl smiled as she walked up to Sora with that sweet voice and face that he couldn't resist. She usually used it when she wanted him to do something with her, and it always worked. Sora couldn't help but blush madly and chuckle like a moron, his hand rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment.

...

Everyone laughed at this, including Riku and Zelda. Then, they looked back down as he finished dressing her wounds.

"There you go," he whispered warmly, looking into her deep sapphire eyes. He couldn't deny how beautiful they were.

"Thank you..." Zelda whispered, looking into Riku's aqua eyes as she lowered her shirt and felt herself blush madly, bright pink spread across her cheeks. Something about Riku made her feel warm and safe...happy.

"Why don't you guys stay here tonight?" Yuffie asked. "We can make something to eat and Zelda needs some time to recover."

"We will. Thanks." Sora said with a smile.

~()~

* * *

Please R&R


	5. Chapter 5

I don't own Kingdom Hearts

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Chapter Five

Dreams and Nightmares

That night Sora lay tossing and turning in his bed, sweat beaded down from his forehead and dripped down through his shirt. He bit back screams of pain as his back arched, covers tossed aside from his struggling form. The images that tormented his mind were cruel, merciless.

~()~

He walked through a twisted white corridor, roses screeching upon the walls and doors looming ominously around him. One of the doors stood out from the rest, glowing gold in front of him, enticing and begging for him to open it. Sora finally gave into its temptation and grasped the handle. A quick pull and a scene played out before him. Horror etched into his body.

Sora watched as a woman's scream shattered through the silence, she ran down barren corridors with walls crumbling and burning all around her. In her arms were two small babies, one of them sound asleep and the other watching over her shoulder, its little hand clasped down on something small and blue. She glanced over her shoulder again, her blue eyes wide in terror as she clutched her children tighter to her body, the skirt of her white dress billowing wildly around her legs. Sora spotted a dark being chasing after her, their body and face hidden under a long black coat and an enormous scythe griped tightly in their hands.

He cast his eyes back to the woman and watched as she rounded the next corner and crouched down, the baby who was awake gazed up at her in confusion, eyes shining and its hand clutched to its precious object. Gently the woman placed the two babies on the ground and pried the object free from its grasp, snapping it in two, an amazing feat to break such a precious thing. Blood ran from the cuts on her hands as she handed half of the item back to the baby, while the other was tucked into the sleeping baby's hand. The Keyblade Master listened to her whisper some words into the child's ear.

"One day my little one, you and your sister will be reunited. Until then, know that I love you both very much, and hope that you both will be safe."

...

She whipped her head around as a loud crash sounded behind her. The cloaked figure had found her, slowly drawing closer and closer with every step.

"I won't let you hurt my babies!" the woman cried, standing as a barrier between the children and the attacker.

The cloaked figure shook their head and laughed.

"Come now, there's no need for this. There's only one thing I want. Now, give him to me!"

"No!" she cried. "You will not have either of them! Not my babies!"

Even in the darkness of their hood Sora could see the smirk that spread across their lips.

"You wish to join your husband? Very well. I will grant it for you."

With a quick swing of their scythe and it was done.

...

The woman gasped, blood ran through her hands as she clutched her chest, scarlet ribbons sliding down her abdomen. She slid to her knees and held her wounds desperately, her breathing hitched, every breath was agony. Her life continued to pool around her body as she reached a bloodstained hand towards the two babies.

"No...! Don't...touch them...!" she rasped.

Sora watched as the cloaked figure ignored their victim and picked up the baby in their hands. The child writhed against their grasp, determined to get away from its mother's killer.

"So, this is the one who will end the Darkness. Only a small child. If this is really the last hope, then it's..."

They stopped talking when they saw the light that was building within the baby's chest, a brilliant light that blinded all around it. The being could barely keep a hold of the child, the light was burning them. A gasp of pain and they were forced to let go. As the baby slid through their fingers the light acted as a cushion as it met with the ground, the light died down only a second later. With its sapphire eyes gazing back at the figure it watched as they knelt down in front of them.

"So, this is your power...and you're not even a year into your life. It seems I've mistaken how weak you are, you're going to be far stronger than I thought. If that is the case, then I'll have to wait. Until then, I'll give you a little reminder of the loss of your world, and your family."

...

Darkness consumes their hand and they pressed it against the child's chest, the baby struggled to get away from them but, only being a small child, they couldn't get far. Their heartbeat increased, their blood pulsated, the outline of their heart shone through their chest as the darkness slowly encased it, becoming a small shell around it. The being slowly got to their feet as they watched the child struggle to get the darkness out of their body, a smirk revealed itself to the light.

"That should restrain your full power for a while. Though the next time we meet, we shall see how much your power has grown."

They then disappeared into a Corridor of Darkness. The world behind them slowly becoming consumes in infinite black. The two babies quickly split apart and became shooting stars, souring through the universe towards other, safer worlds.

~()~

Sora bolted upright, his body drenched in sweat and his breaths heaving and unsettled. His thoughts were a jumbled mess, not one thing was clear in his head.

_So much blood... So much power... That woman again, just who is she? Only time will tell, I guess._ He thought to himself.

Pulling his clothes on he glanced over the sleeping forms of his friends. Somehow Riku had found his way over to Zelda's side and Kairi was curled up tightly beneath her sheets, a serene smile on her face. Donald and Goofy were in another room, the same for Aerith, Yuffie and the others. Silently Sora made his way over to the door, the moon streaming silver through the windows, and opened it as quietly as possible.

~()~

Darkness flooded the streets with pale lights flickering in their posts, the moon a white orb in the middle of a midnight sky. The cobbles crackled beneath Sora's trainers as he walked towards the bailey, still in stages of repair after the battle with the Heartless. The wind whistled through the cracks and plundered against his body with chilling malice. But he didn't care. His heart had undergone far worse than a little cold, it was really nothing more than a light breeze. Every bit of pain, every fight that he went through, it only made the light in his heart stronger.

He trudged down the darkened and empty streets, his eyes adjusting to the darkness around him and his feet slowly carrying him down to the pathway towards through the Crystal Fissure. Through blue crystals glaring back at him like mirrors and over crumbling rocks he made his way over the Great Maw.

~()~

Soon enough he arrived at the Dark Depths. Sora saw Cloud standing at its edge, glaring out at the darkened horizon, his black coat billowed behind him like a storm of night. A chill went up his spine, like someone was watching him, but he shook it away as he approached slowly.

"Mind if I join you?" he asked.

Cloud glanced towards him out of the corner of his eye, shook his head silently and turned his gaze back to the night unfolding in front of him. Sora sat down upon a rock, the view overlooking the large castle in the distance, the shadows fleeted around him, fleeing from him like they would from the sun. The moon became a wicked smirk back at him, snickering at his tormented nights. His sapphire eyes glanced up at the older man, the corner of his mouth curled up.

"Couldn't sleep either, huh?" he asked.

"No. I can sense Sephiroth's presence, he is near and I will find him." Cloud explained ominously.

Sora took in his words silently and placed his hands behind his head.

"Well, he was here last time, are you hoping to find something that'll tell you where he went?" he asked.

Cloud gave a chuckle, almost missed by the teenager.

"Sounds like you thought that through," he laughed. His face turned serious again before continuing. "But you're right, and once I find him, his days are numbered."

The boy shrugged his shoulders and continued to gaze out at the horizon.

"You've probably heard this before from Aerith and everyone, but be careful, he's not going to be an easy fight."

The man looked down at him and gave an almost smile.

"You've matured since receiving the Keyblade, and your heart is always getting stronger, it's remarkable." Cloud commented.

Sora met his gaze calmly, his signature smile wide and white teeth showing.

"That's because I've got great friends, they give me strength," he explained.

"Modest as always." Cloud laughed before his face became serious again. "Though that's not the reason you're out here, something's on your mind, and I don't think it's the Heartless problem."

Sora breathed a sigh, he was either an open book, or Cloud was just too perceptive for his own good.

"Weird dreams. At least, weirder than usual for me. It's like I'm being thrown into someone's past. It doesn't make any sense, and it cuts off before I can make heads or tails of it," he explained.

_But it feels so familiar..._ He thought silently.

Cloud nodded his head in acceptance, he wasn't going to question further.

"Knowing you, you'll figure it out, no matter how long it takes. You always do."

A teasing smirk spread across Sora's face as he turned his gaze up to the older man.

"Was that a compliment?" he joked.

Cloud ruffled the boy's hair with his knuckles, chuckling slightly at his words.

"Don't get your hopes up, kid."

When he removed his hand Cloud turned back towards the entrance to the Dark Depths.

"Anyway, it's getting late, I haven't slept yet so I better head back. Don't stay out too long, Sora. Who knows what might come along?"

Sora waved his hand, his smile never leaving his face.

"I'll keep an eye out, I should be back in an hour. I'll see you back at Merlin's."

The man nodded his head and disappeared down through the Crystal Maw.

~()~

Sora turned his gaze back to the castle's silhouette, a small ray of sun slowly coming through between the turrets. He sighed heavily as he got to his feet, he would think about his dreams another time, all he wanted to do right now was sleep.

An image flashed in his mind. He felt his eyes glaze and everything blur around him. It was like his mind had just left his body and was playing a scene out in front of him. He gazed at the sight. A small pair of hands stared back at him, fingers clumsily clutched around a small blue stone, a crown identical to the one around his neck. The blurred face of a woman smiled back at him, her blue eyes matching his own the only thing he could focus on.

"A part of who you are... And the key to your destiny..."

~()~

He quickly shook himself back to reality and glanced over his shoulder, feeling as though someone was watching him. Sora flexed his hand leisurely, preparing himself for any Heartless, but none came. Another sigh escaped him.

_Must be my imagination. _He thought to himself.

He turned on his heel and away from the light.

Although the moment he turned his back to the horizon, he felt something long and sharp press against his shoulder. He glanced down silently to see what it was; a long, deadly sword. His feet froze in place and he cast a sapphire eye over his shoulder, going up the shaft, past the hilt, and up the arm of the owner. A storm of black feathers entered his sight, mixed with the moon's reflection on silver and a pair of aqua jewels staring back at him.

Sora's hand clenched tightly, the temptation to summon his Keyblade became stronger. But he didn't. He merely stared back at his assailant.

"Sephiroth..." he whispered.

~()~

Please R&R


	6. Chapter 6

I don't own Kingdom Hearts

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Chapter Six

Bloodied Explanations

Sora stood still, his hand still clenched into a fist. He glared silently at the man, casting an eye occasionally to the blade on his shoulder.

"Sephiroth...are you looking for Cloud again?" he asked firmly.

The silver-haired man's lips curled slightly at the corners.

"Not for the moment. I'm waiting for him to find me."

"Why don't you find him yourself? You were watching us long enough." Sora asked.

Sephiroth pressed the blade slightly harder against his shoulder, a small drop of blood ran down Sora's arm.

"Your senses have improved. But you should hold your tongue, unless you want me to cut it out," he smirked. When Sora remained silent he continued. "I assume you still have the Keyblade in your possession?"

"Yeah... What of it?" Sora answered.

Sephiroth withdrew his blade from his shoulder and sneered at the blood that decorated it, before he drew it down with the tip at Sora's chest.

"Let's see how the Keyblade takes to a more...powerful master."

With a quick swing of the sword he lunged for the boy.

* * *

Sora acted on instinct and back flipped out the way, summoning the Ultima Weapon as he did so, and landed on his feet a few metres away. He set himself in a battle stance and got ready to bear the assault of another attack.

Sephiroth smirked and took another swing, the blade slicing through the air with a violent rip. The young Keyblader dodge rolled out the way and delivered a swipe of his own, slicing it across his opponent's unguarded arm.

It was paid no heed, as Sephiroth used his wing to propel himself into the air. He hovered for a moment and watched as Sora used high-jump, swinging the blade towards him to stop what he knew would be an oncoming attack.

He got there too late.

"Sin Harvest." Sephiroth murmured.

Sora felt his energy draining, he couldn't cast Cure as his magic was just about gone, all he could do was dodge out the way of a fierce onslaught, gulping down an Elixir as he did so.

"That's enough games."

The man struck him with his katana in quick procession, but Sora managed to block them all, his instincts going into overtime.

* * *

An idea then hit him, a smirk played on his lips as he glanced over at the cliff edge. He ran over to it and looked over his shoulder, playing the act that he was cornered. Sephiroth followed him, his wing dusted over the ground and brought up stones in its wake.

Sora smiled beneath the shadow of his hair, his plan had worked.

The instant that the one winged angel came close he quickly performed an aerial manoeuvre over Sephiroth's head, striking the Keyblade down upon his back. A writhing hiss and Sephiroth whipped around, surging towards him in a stream of roaring flames. Sora quickly leapt out the way and composed himself before releasing a stream of Strike Raids followed by a Judgement Triad.

His opponent sent him a glare and powered up another blazing attack. The boy gasped as he felt the flames around him, searing and scorching closer and closer to his skin. But he didn't flinch, just quickly dodged out the way as threw the Keyblade for another Strike Raid.

* * *

Sephiroth paused for a moment as he studied Sora standing near the cliff edge. The way he held the Keyblade, how his eyes oozed defiance, light practically sparking from his fighting stance. A faint crack echoed silently around them and more light came forth from Sora's body. The man smirked.

"Do you really think you can defeat me?" he asked, taunting him as he extended his sword between them.

Sora made a move to dodge, but it happened too fast.

The blade penetrated his flesh, slowly drawing blood down its brilliant edge. He gritted his teeth as it began to sink deeper. Through agonised eyes he watched as his wound opened up again. Sephiroth gave a sadistic smirk.

"The pain is insufferable, isn't it? Yet you power through. What is your true strength?" he sneered.

Sora shrugged his shoulders, but continued to glare at him. He didn't even seem to be acknowledging the pain that coursed through his body. His eyes darkened before responding, in a voice that didn't sound like his own.

"You'd be surprised at what I can do..." he murmured in a whisper, almost impossible to hear.

* * *

Light crackled from Sora's body, the silver crown around his neck glowed alongside his Keyblade; his eyes lost their pupils and began to glint a ferocious dark sapphire. With such force he pushed the katana out of his torso, blood dripped down his chest but he didn't care.

He leapt and swung his blade down, his clothes immediately shifted to the silver and black might of his Final Form. A roar ripped from his throat and the blade into contact with Sephiroth's skin.

A feral hiss released itself from the man's throat, he staggered back and held his wound. For the first time Sora saw surprise on his face. But it was only a moment later that Sephiroth sneered at him.

"Your heart holds the impossible, yet is shadowed by the Darkness. In time the truth will fall at your feet."

He then disappeared without a trace.

Sora's Final Form slipped away and he slid down to his knees, his hands clutched his opened wound feverishly as his Keyblade disappeared in a mix of light and stars. His teeth gritted in pain the young Keyblader hoisted himself to his feet and began to stagger back through the Great Maw, quickly downing another Elixir as he did so.

~( )~

* * *

After making his way through the slowly brightening streets, his fingers toyed with the shredded front of his shirt.

_I'll ask Aerith to see if she can fix it. I'd rather not go strutting around with only half a shirt on_. He thought to himself.

Sora sighed heavily when he made his way up to the Bailey, his sapphire eyes casting a glance towards the castle, the dream from that night forever a scar in his mind.

~( )~

He walked back into the house and sat at the table, his head in his hand as he acknowledged the flickering flames of the fireplace. Laying his head on the table he closed his eyes, then drifted off to sleep.

~( )~

* * *

The following morning he was awoken by someone shaking his shoulder. He groaned and swatted the hand away. A huff of annoyance entered his ears.

"Get up, you lazy bum!" they shouted.

Sora cracked an eye open and smirked.

"Gimme a break, Kairi! Let me sleep!"

Despite his words he complied with her wishes and sat up. It was then the girl saw the state of his shirt.

"What the hell happened to your shirt?" she cried, bringing him to his feet so she could get a better look.

Her shouting brought everyone else into the main room. Sora sighed heavily and scratched the back of his head.

"Language Kairi, and don't worry about it. I just went for a walk coz I couldn't sleep. I got into a fight at the Dark Depths and they got my shirt."

Cloud looked at him silently before speaking.

"You saw Sephiroth, didn't you?" he stated.

Sora turned to the spiky-haired blond and nodded his head.

"He caught me just as I was about to head back. We got into a fight and he managed to open up my wound, I fought him off but he left before I could do anything. I drank an Elixir then came back. Sorry I couldn't stop him, Cloud."

The man shrugged his shoulders.

"He'll be back, and I'll be ready."

Aerith then stepped forward.

"I'll patch up your shirt before you head off, you're leaving from another world later, right?" she offered.

Sora accepted her offer and slipped back into his bedroom.

~( )~

He fell back on his bed and stared up at the ceiling, his arms propped up behind his head. Pulling the shirt over his head Sora threw it off to a corner of the room. He then caught a glance of his wound. Trailing a finger down its length Sora gritted his teeth, the Elixir may have closed it but it was still painful.

Sora shook his head then threw himself onto his bed, he knew one of his friends would wake him up before they left for the next world. He closed his eyes and pulled the covers over his head, then slipped into dreamless sleep.

~( )~

* * *

Aerith walked in silently and smiled at the sleeping boy, took his shirt off the floor then left the room to join the others. Taking a seat she pulled out a needle and thread and begun to sew the shirt back together. Kairi sat opposite her with Zelda and Riku. The others, except Cloud, had left to carry out their Restoration duties.

Kairi propped her elbows up on the table and gazed down at the gaping hole in Sora's shirt.

"Why would Sora go out in the middle of the night without telling us?" she asked.

"Probably didn't want to wake you and make you worry about him. You know how he puts his friends before himself." Aerith answered calmly, her eyes never leaving her stitching.

Riku leant back on his chair.

"What I'd like to know is why he went there in the first place," he said.

Cloud got up from his place leaning against the wall.

"He seemed transfixed by the castle when I talked to him. He said he'd been having weird dreams and wanted to figure them out, apparently they seemed to be throwing him into someone's past and they cut off before he can understand them, he didn't give any more details than that," he explained.

Riku and Kairi glanced at each other, worried about their friend.

"Sora's dreams always mean something, if it's something that hasn't happened, it's going to happen. And when it's something from the past, it usually gives him clues about the future or important information that can help him understand everything. It's always been like that, even before the Keyblade." Kairi explained.

Aerith tapped her chin thoughtfully as she finished sewing.

"Who really knows the meaning behind dreams? But if what you say is true, then his dreams may be the key to finding what you need."

She handed Kairi Sora's shirt and smiled at Cloud. He arched his eyebrows and turned his gaze to the door.

"Who's going to wake up Sora?" he asked.

Kairi and Riku looked at each other, suddenly very afraid of waking up the boy. Both of them knew it was near on impossible to wake him up without being treated to a Firaga or Thundraga by a half asleep Sora, and despite not being fully awake, he was very accurate when hitting his targets.

"I think it'd be better if we waited for him... Someone always gets a Firaga or some other offensive spell somewhere they don't want it, and it's never Sora..." Riku explained, sweat beading down his forehead.

Zelda looked at him in surprise.

"Sora's that strong even when he's not focused? That's actually scary!" she smiled as she stole a glance towards the door. "Care to give an example about what you mean?"

Kairi's face lit up at those words.

"The other day Riku tried to wake him up while he was sleeping on the beach back on Destiny Islands. Sora was really annoyed and while he still had his eyes shut he cast a Blizzaga and hit Riku right in the..." she explained before Riku slammed his hand over her mouth.

"Thank you Kairi! That's enough!" he quickly interrupted.

Everyone burst into laughter at their antics, they all knew where the story was going, and Riku's blushing face only made it all the funnier.

When things had calmed down the group looked back to the door.

"So I guess we wait." Zelda concluded, wiping a tear from her eye.

They had all been laughing so much that she had started crying. Kairi nodded her head in agreement and placed Sora's shirt back inside the room before coming back to join the others.

* * *

A couple of hours later Sora emerged, redressed and refreshed. He stretched his arms behind his head and smiled at his friends.

"Are we ready to set off?" he asked.

Riku looked up and smirked.

"We were just waiting for you, slowpoke. If you didn't wake up, we would have left without you."

Sora rolled his eyes.

"Like you're better at waking up, in fact you're worse. You have to be dragged out of bed before you even open your eyes!" he laughed.

Riku smirked.

"You must have rubbed off on me, I can't think of any other reason why that would happen," he said. As he began to walk out the door he looked at Sora over his shoulder and smiled. "C'mon, everyone's waiting, and they all want to know about that strange dream of yours."

Sora shook his head.

"It may have been a one time thing, if it occurs again, I'll let you guys know."

They walked out of Merlin's house and met up with Kairi, Zelda, Donald and Goofy. Climbing into the Gummi Ship they took off and began speeding off to the next world.

~( )~

* * *

Please R&R


	7. Chapter 7

I don't own Kingdom Hearts

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Chapter Seven

Twilight Town- Secrets and Struggles

Sora sat in the driver's seat of the Gummi Ship, space floating past the windows. He spun the wheel to avoid Heartless ships and found himself steering towards another world. Lights flickered from the building windows and the signs flashed their neon letters against the dark space. He smiled to himself.

"Prepare to land in Twilight Town!" he called to the others.

Donald, Goofy, Zelda, Riku and Kairi came up to the cockpit and watched as Twilight Town came closer.

"Seems kinda random, which worlds we're going to, don't you think?" Riku asked sceptically.

"Master Yen Sid may have an idea about who the Prince of Heart could be." Goofy said thoughtfully.

Sora smiled.

"Yeah, he knows everything that goes on, maybe he can give us a clue," he agreed. As he landed the ship he continued. "Plus it'll be a chance to catch up with Hayner and everyone, we haven't seen them since the World That Never Was."

Riku nodded his head to the outside.

"It sounds like you're good friends, I'd like to meet them," he said. "We should split up, Donald and Goofy can go see Yen Sid while we catch up with your friends."

The plan was agreed and the group split up.

~( )~

* * *

Donald and Goofy took the train to Yen Sid's tower and saw the outside to be swarming with Dusks, they slunk around on the ground and were continually trying to get through the tower doors, but they couldn't break through. Quickly Donald pulled out his staff and cast a quick Firaga on the swarm to get their attention, destroying one of them as he did so.

It quickly broke out into a fight, Dusks surrounding the pair only to be destroyed moments later by Donald's spells and Goofy charging with his shield. The duck had to cast Cure a few times but nothing more than that. Soon enough all the Dusks were eliminated and the duo ran through the doors and up the excessive staircase.

Within a matter of moments they burst through the doors to the room at the tower's peak, meeting the gaze of Yen Sid as he sat at his desk, book pages slowly turning with a wave of his hand. The wizard looked up from his reading and glanced at the two animals.

"Donald, Goofy, I've been expecting you. I take the others are out in Twilight Town?" he greeted.

Donald nodded his head.

"They said they were going to see some friends. But that's not why we're here, we want to know..."

"About the Prince of Heart." Yen Sid finished for him, opening another book. "What would you like to know?"

~( )~

* * *

Sora led the way to the Hangout, Kairi, Zelda and Riku following close behind him; they went down the Back Alley leading to the Sandlot then ducked into a small alcove with metal fencing at the entrance. The Keyblader called out into the Usual Spot.

"Hayner! Pence! Olette! Anyone here?"

A trio of footsteps closed in behind the four friends. They turned around and saw Hayner, Pence and Olette. The three of them were dressed in Twilight Town's high school uniform consisting of white short-sleeved shirts, black trousers and shoes for the boys and a red plaid skirt for Olette, and a red ties around their necks.

"Sora, you're back!" Olette cried.

"Hey guys." Sora greeted. "Back at school then?"

Hayner ran a hand through his dark blond hair.

"Just got out for the day, I could seriously do with some sea-salt ice cream right now," he groaned. "Anyway, it looks like you found Kairi."

The group then went into further introductions between the trio, Riku and Zelda. Riku glanced around, his brow knitted together, the hair on the back of his neck stood on end.

"Have you seen anything strange going on around town?" he asked. "Any Heartless or Nobodies skulking around?"

Pence glanced around and took a seat on the couch.

"They've been hanging around the Sandlot by the look of it, there's meant to be a Struggle tournament tonight, but a lot more of them seem to be coming from the Mansion," he replied, his fingers tightening his bandana.

"Struggle Tournament?" Zelda asked.

"Wasn't there one before you guys went back to school?" Kairi asked.

Hayner waved his hand and slouched onto the couch beside Pence, his school bag thrown carelessly to the other side of the room.

"The summer one is the main tournament, but there are mini ones all year round, it gives everyone the chance to practice their skills and improve for the big one next year. But with all those Heartless and Nobodies running around, it looks like there are less people entering than usual," he explained. "But I think the person who's making them all appear is meant to be at the tournament, maybe you can get it to calm down by stopping them?"

Riku arched his eyebrows.

"Why don't any of you guys enter? You all know what to do," he asked.

Pence sighed heavily.

"We can't... The Heartless are the opponents and we can't fight against them. Also none of you have actually played a Struggle match, except..."

Their gazes all turned to Sora, he was the obvious candidate for the job, he and his Nobody knew the rules of the game and he had the weapon that could destroy the Heartless. Under their intense stares he raised his hands in defeat.

"Okay, okay, I'll enter. But you guys need to check out the Mansion as well, see if there are any clues about who we're dealing with."

"Me and Riku will go and check it out, Kairi can stay with you and cheer you on." Zelda teased.

They nodded their heads, a blush on Sora's face as Kairi laced her hand through his.

"So we'll meet up at the Sandlot once we're done, good luck Sora." Riku said.

He and Zelda then began to make their way through the forest to the Mansion.

~( )~

* * *

Yen Sid stood up and brought out a book, then placed it on a pedestal upon an open page, writing spreading across the paper like wildfire. Donald and Goofy looked at the pages in awe, waiting patiently for him to begin speaking. The moment he did, the room filled with an ominous silence.

"The Prince of Heart was born in a world that was first consumed by the Darkness fifteen years ago, so lost in time no one can recall its name. He is believed to be able to wield the most powerful Keyblade in existence, with impossible power at his fingertips. Destined to lead the Princesses of Heart and end the Darkness once and for all. When his world was consumed by Darkness he ended up going to another world in order to stay safe," he explained. "I cannot tell you much more than that, although I do know the enemy you'll be facing. It is an opponent you have faced in the past, a handful of members from the Organisation that you thought had been destroyed. The one leading the whole thing, the one who is after him, is the same person who destroyed the Prince's world in the beginning."

The two companions looked at him in confusion.

"Is there any way we can find him?" Goofy asked.

Yen Sid sighed.

"I'm afraid not. All I can say for now is to contact the Princesses of Heart and get them to help," he said. He paused for a moment before continuing. "As for the Prince, do not worry, he will reveal himself to you. And he may be closer than you think."

Donald and Goofy began to make their way out the room.

"Thanks for your help, Master Yen Sid," the duck thanked.

They then disappeared out the door.

~( )~

* * *

Zelda and Riku stood outside the gates of the Mansion, the boy rubbed the back of his head and stared at the giant lock that adorned it. She looked at her companion out the corner of her eye and flushed silently.

"Something wrong, Riku?" she asked.

He shook his head, an embarrassed smile on his lips.

"This place brings back memories, both good and bad..." he explained before falling silent.

"Wanna talk about it? It's usually good to get stuff off your chest before it hurts you." Zelda said, touching his hand with hers.

Riku sighed heavily, looking into her sapphire eyes; they pierced him, begged him for the truth, he couldn't refuse her wish.

"I always wanted to see other worlds. The first time the three of us experienced problems with the worlds, I didn't listen to Sora when the Heartless first destroyed Destiny Islands. It didn't take a genius to see something was wrong, but I could see Sora was seriously affected by the whole thing. I hurt him and Kairi and ended up being consumed by darkness..." he explained, clenching his fist. "Even after everything I did to him, Sora fought to save me, losing his memories in the process. It took a year for it to be put back together again, and I could only watch as he slept. I don't know how he could still be himself after all that, he matured and grew stronger, but he always stayed the same old Sora."

Zelda smiled up at him.

"He sounds like a good person, I'm surprised that he even had a Heartless. You two must be very close."

"Yeah, always been that way...and hopefully always will be." Riku responded softly.

They let go of each other's hands and Riku pulled out his Keyblade to unlock the padlock. Zelda pried open the gates, using her sword as a lever. They then went inside.

~( )~

* * *

Kairi sat on one of the benches in the Sandlot, watching Sora practice swinging his Struggle bat before his fight. Lots of people had gathered and were waiting for the matches to begin.

A quartet of kids stood nearby, all of them surrounding a tall boy with a black beanie on his head. She couldn't help but glare at him from the looks he gave Sora, it angered her beyond belief, more than anything did she want to whip out her Keyblade and smack him across the Sandlot. But she held her temper firmly by its constraints.

_If he does anything, I'll beat him up later. _Kairi concluded to herself, smirking at the thought of making blood come out of his nose.

Her gaze then flicked back to Sora, who had finished his practice and was now wiping the sweat from his brow.

Sora glanced around at the other competitors, seeing the Heartless bob and slither around in the shadows and wait for their moment to strike. He spotted Seifer and his gang amongst the crowd of people, his lips became a scowl.

Waiting for the announcer to start the tournament he walked to Kairi's side and let her hold his hand in silence, her eyes conveying her wishes of good luck to him with a smile on her face. Sora nodded his head and squeezed her shoulder in assurance, he could clearly see that she was worried.

"Don't worry, I'll be fine. I've been in a Struggle with Seifer before, so it won't be that bad," he reassured.

Kairi then did something unexpected. She kissed him on the cheek.

"I know, but still, be careful," she pleaded.

He placed a kiss to her forehead and looked at her over his shoulder as he made his way onto the battleground, a smile on his face.

"I will, I promise."

Sora got into a battle stance and watched as the Heartless gathered on the field, his eyes piercing jewels as they intensified and focused on his opponents, a faint crack entered the air.

~( )~

* * *

Riku and Zelda managed to make their way to the Mansion's Basement, the room silent and void of movement, only the sound of their joined footsteps echoing against the walls. The boy walked over to the computer system and typed in the password; he glanced at Zelda behind him, who was wearing a curious expression on her face.

Riku found himself mesmerised by her small pouting lips and wide sapphire eyes, her brown hair had become slightly dishevelled and had come loose from her ponytail during their excursion down through the many halls and corridors, but it only made her more beautiful. A blush formed on his cheeks when he realised he was staring, so he quickly turned back to the monitor when it sparked to life.

Zelda tilted her head in confusion.

"What are you looking for?" she asked.

"Any information Ansem may have found on this new enemy, if we've faced them before, they may be in one of his files." Riku replied.

"Sora and I fought a woman called Larxene, try searching her and let's see if we can get any links to her superiors and associates." Zelda ordered.

He obliged to her wishes and typed in the search, the two of them waiting in anticipation for the results. Her hands rested on his shoulders and her cheek pressed against his.

~( )~

* * *

Sora took a quick swing at the Heartless attacking him, he dodged under one of their slashes and lashed out with his feet, knocking them to the ground. The crowd cheered around him as he quickly took care of his opponents, all of them disappearing in a wisp of black smoke.

He glanced over his shoulder and smiled at Kairi standing in the stands watching him, she returned it and he continued to battle through the swarms of Heartless and Nobodies coming at him.

In the one moment that he had seized his victory Sora spotted two black hooded figures in the crowd, one immediately disappeared into a corridor of Darkness while the other stepped forward, a smirk evident even in the shadows of their face. Their laughter rung in the air as everyone around him stood still, frozen in time. Sora summoned his Keyblade when the figure began to approach him.

"Are you Larxene, or someone else in HIS group?" he demanded.

Kairi was quick to come to his side and summoned her own Keyblade. The hooded figure stepped forward and threw their hood back, revealing their blonde hair and antennae-like bangs.

"Aww, you ruin all the fun, Sora!" she whined.

Kairi let out a growl and stepped between them, sapphire eyes blazing like flames in the light.

"Why are you here?" she demanded.

The woman couldn't help but laugh at the look on her face.

"Why, we've got some use for your boyfriend, you royal brat. So why don't you step out the way and let me do my job?" she mocked.

The two teenagers turned red at her statement, glancing at each other out of the corners of their eyes before diverting their attention back to their opponent. Kairi let out a fierce shout and slashed at Larxene.

"Like hell I'm going to let you take him!"

Larxene laughed at her fury.

"Temper, temper. What language from a Princess of Heart!" she sniggered. "Oh well! You've just made my job more fun!"

She pulled out her knives and struck, lightning sparking the ground between them.

~( )~

* * *

Alarm bells going off, screens screaming at them, Zelda and Riku leapt back from the computers when they finally found what they were looking for.

"What the hell is going on?" Zelda shouted over the noise.

"It's the alarm system, it goes off when the people on screen are serious trouble. We better get this stuff back to the others." Riku explained as he shut off the alarm.

Zelda nodded her head and the two of them walked out the Mansion.

~( )~

* * *

Sora leapt out of the way of a lightning attack, then performed a Strike Raid straight at Larxene's back. It hit its mark and she staggered, allowing Kairi to cast a Blizzard spell into her stomach and send her crashing against a nearby wall.

Larxene's knives disappeared as she clambered to her feet, her body a galore of blood and cuts; she sneered at the pair, a Corridor of Darkness appearing behind her.

"Not bad, not bad at all, though not enough to take me out. Until next time, kiddies!"

She then disappeared and time unfroze.

* * *

The moment she faded into the darkness, Riku and Zelda came running from one entrance to the Sandlot while Donald and Goofy entered through the other. They saw Sora and Kairi in the centre of the Struggle field with the crowd cheering around them.

Sora and Kairi leapt off the platform and dashed over to their friends. Riku eyed them worriedly and spotted several small cuts and scratches.

"What happened?" he demanded.

Sora quickly cast a Cure on him and Kairi and nervously rubbed the back of his head.

"Larxene made an appearance again, along with a companion, but they didn't stick around for the fight. She froze everyone so we could fight," he explained.

Zelda touched her stomach, remembering what that mad woman had done to her; it was still tender, but thanks to Riku's care, it was healing well.

"Was she after the same thing as last time?" she asked.

Sora only nodded his head, a frown on his face.

He then moved onto a different matter.

"So, did you guys find anything?" he asked.

Donald stepped up and explained what he and Goofy had found out from Yen Sid.

"...so basically we have to round up the Princesses of Heart and get them to help find him."

Sora nodded his head and smiled.

"We can take them to Disney Castle, they'll be safe there while we try to find the Prince."

With their plan decided the group said farewell to their friends and made their way back to the Gummi Ship, ready to begin the next step on their journey.

~( )~

* * *

Please R&R


	8. Chapter 8

I don't own Kingdom Hearts

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Chapter Eight

Wonderland- Trials and Terrors

Much deliberation was done before they decided which of the Princesses worlds they should go to first; they argued back and forth until they finally reached a decision, the world that was drawing closer in the ship's window. The ground was reminiscent of a chess board and heart shaped hedges was scattered around the world. Sora smiled as he watched Riku steer them towards it.

"Coming towards Wonderland, brace for landing!" he called.

With slight awkwardness Riku landed the Gummi ship and smiled to himself when he landed without incident.

"So we're picking up Alice, and then giving her a teleport to send her to Disney Castle and get one of the other princesses?" he asked.

"That just about sums it up." Sora said calmly, his hands behind his head.

The group headed off the ship and found themselves in the long twisted hallway leading up to the small tea room. Kairi eyed the bottles on the table with a sceptical eye as Sora picked one up and took a small sip, who quickly shrunk down and headed through the nearby door, followed by the others in procession.

~( )~

In a matter of minutes they were in the Queen of Hearts' hedge garden, Sora threw his arms behind his head and smiled.

"It's been a while since I've been here, last time the Queen threatened to take off my head!" he laughed.

Zelda shook her head.

"Sounds like a crazy lady if you ask me. I don't know whether I should be scared, worried, or yelling at her for being a complete idiot!"

"Do I want to know what you did to make her want to take your head?" Riku asked with a sceptic eyebrow raised.

Sora merely gave him his signature smile.

"I just proved Alice's innocence against a crime she supposedly committed when it was in fact the Heartless, and she wanted to take my head off because I proved her wrong," he explained. "But that's really not the point right now. We should start looking for Alice."

Without another word he began to lead the way through the hedge gardens.

~( )~

Not soon after they began walking the sound of shouts and protests filled the air, a few black and red playing cards brushed past the group, two of which were hauling a young girl with blonde hair by her arms. Sora recognised her instantly and ran forward.

"Alice! What's going on?" he asked.

Alice turned her head towards him and cried out.

"Heartless have been causing trouble! The Queen of Hearts thinks I did it! Hurry to the trial! You'll find more there!"

She then disappeared through a hedge arch.

Sora didn't need to be told twice. He immediately bolted into a run that was so fast it left a streak of billowing dust behind him. Riku was quick to go after the lightning fast boy, followed by Zelda and Kairi with Goofy and Donald bringing up the rear.

"Why is it that we always get mixed up in these things?!" Donald cried as they disappeared through the hedge.

~( )~

They entered the centre of the maze to see Alice stood on a trial podium before the Queen of Hearts, staring back at the woman defiantly as she folded her arms in front of her chest. The White Rabbit scampered past them with a trumpet and a scroll. Sora almost couldn't hold back a smile.

_This brings back memories..._ He thought to himself, remembering the first steps he took as Keyblade Master.

Quickly shaking his head Sora watched as the trial went underway.

The Queen of Hearts raised her sceptre and cracked it on the ground, an echoing silence fell over the small area; she sent an icy glare down at the young girl and shouted at her.

"You have been accused of attempting to steal my heart, and since my word is law without question. Off with-!"

"This is ludicrous! This isn't a proper trial! What evidence do you have?" Alice yelled back.

The Queen's face turned red.

"There is no evidence! Off with her-!"

Sora had seen just about enough. Without a second thought he ran through the crowd of cards and stepped forward.

"I'll find your evidence!" he yelled.

The Queen looked at him, a sneer spread across her lips.

"You again! Fine! Bring it to me! But if you fail, it's off with your head!" she bellowed. Her gaze fell back to Alice. "Put her in the cage! Don't let her escape!"

The group watched as Alice was hauled away and locked inside the cage beside the throne. Cleaing his throat the White Rabbit spoke above them all.

"The trial will take a short recess. We will resume shortly."

Sora and the others were then left alone with the imprisoned Alice.

They approached her slowly before stopping in front of her cage. Kairi crouched down and took her hand.

"Are you alright?" she asked kindly.

Alice smiled up at her, her hand tightened around Kairi's.

"I'm okay. She's just been looking for an excuse to take off my head these days. The Heartless have been going crazy lately, like there's something they're just waiting for and getting impatient for it to come," she explained.

"Maybe it's the Prince of Heart?" Goofy suggested.

"Prince of Heart?" Alice inquired.

After a quick explanation the girl nodded her head.

"Okay, when you get me out of here, send me over to Disney Castle and I can see if I can contact one of the other princesses, then maybe we can work together and find the Prince."

"Any idea where the Queen was attacked by the Heartless? Maybe that'll give us a place to start." Zelda suggested.

Alice tapped her chin in thought, a smile then spread across her lips.

"I remember being found in the Lotus Forest, but that place is a maze, so evidence could be through just about any of the exits. I wish you the best of luck!"

At those words the group ran out towards their destination.

~( )~

"This is impossible!" Donald groaned.

Zelda patted the duck's shoulder sympathetically.

"It's annoying that we're so small that we have to high jump to get everywhere, but it's not quite impossible," she assured.

"You didn't complain last year when we did the exact same thing." Sora quipped as he high jumped near another exit out of the Lotus Forest. "Anyway, I think this one leads to another entrance to that room we started in. Some of us should go back though and make sure Alice is still okay, I trust that Queen to keep her word as far as I can throw her."

Kairi stepped up, her arm looped through Zelda's and a smile plastered on her lips.

"Zelda and I will go, you've got a better idea what we're looking for anyway," she smiled.

As soon as they began to walk away the boys looked at each other.

"Why do I get the feeling that we've just been duped into doing all the work?" Riku asked.

Sora merely shook his head and prepared himself to jump through the entranceway.

"It's fine, it just gives them a chance to get to know each other. It is the first time it was just them talking, so let's leave them to it."

Without hearing his friend's answer he leapt through the hedge. Riku couldn't help but shake his head.

"He never changes...Always taking care of others when he doesn't have to..." he murmured, following after him.

~( )~

Through the door to the Bizarre Room and they made their way towards a small box sitting atop a light fixture, surrounded by Shadows, Big Armours and a few Night Warriors. Sora groaned in annoyance and readied his Keyblade.

"Looks like those things are back again. Be ready for them!" he murmured as they began to sneak closer to their goal.

Riku nodded his head, eyeing the swords they held in their hands; sharp and striking, sliding up to a deadly point. His lips formed a focused scowl, pale green eyes glinting with a fierce determination.

"A sneak attack then?" he suggested.

Sora gave his famous, gleaming smile. A single ping, like cracking glass, echoed silently in the air.

"Let's go!" Goofy cried, his shield at the ready.

In that split second they dashed towards their opponents.

~( )~

Kairi and Zelda walked out of the Lotus Forest and ended up outside a small cottage, a long table laden with teacups and pots stood in the centre of the small clearing, surrounded by cushy armchairs and tall stools. Kairi rolled her eyes and took a seat, picking up a teacup and pouring herself a drink. When Zelda looked at her in sceptic confusion she gave her a relaxed smile.

"What? The boys are on the case, so we might as well relax and have a cup of tea before heading back to the trial," she explained, the smile never leaving her face.

Zelda sighed heavily but took a seat beside her.

"I guess it can't hurt, but I can't help but worry about the guys, I hope they're alright..."

The Princess of Heart nudged her playfully with her elbow.

"Don't worry so much, they can take care of themselves, and if something happens they will look after one another. It's what they've done as long as they've known each other," she smiled.

"Have Sora and Riku always been that close? I talked to Riku a bit about his past with you and Sora, but I want to hear about your side of the story." Zelda explained. "Wanna tell me?"

Kairi smiled.

"Alright, pour yourself a cup of tea then, it's quite a long story."

Zelda poured a drink for herself and brought it to her lips.

"We've got time."

~( )~

Sora and Riku struck out with their blades, vicious clangs rang in the air like thrashing bells. Goofy crashed into the Nobodies with his shield and sent the small Shadows flying into the wall. Donald cast a series of Blizzagas in quick procession at the Large Armours, leaving the glowing hearts to sour into the air after they were destroyed.

Sora dodge rolled beneath the feet of the Night Warriors and slashed them across their backs, his eyes glinted in determination with every blow he delivered. Riku lashed out with Way of Dawn, hitting one of the Night Warriors in the side of the head. He made to dodge to the side but didn't expect what happened next. None of them did.

"RIKU!"

~( )~

Kairi took another sip of her tea before she began to speak.

"As long as I can remember Sora and Riku have always been close. I arrived on Destiny Islands when I was about five after Radiant Garden was taken by darkness. Sora and Riku found me floating in the ocean near the play island, I remember Sora diving in to get me out coz I was unconscious; he actually managed to lift me up when he got me out the water. But after that day the three of us became very close, wanting to see other worlds, watching the night sky to see the stars," she explained. "When Destiny Islands was consumed by darkness last year my heart and body got separated, Sora came looking for me and my heart took refuge inside his, so I got to travel the worlds with him in spirit. But the whole time, I felt there was some part of him that was trapped, like it was holding back his true power. They've gotten so strong, they've seen so many worlds and matured, understanding what we're facing. By learning our pasts, it's just brought us all closer together."

"What about Sora? Riku told me his memories got a bit messed up for a year. What do you think about that?" Zelda asked.

"He's always said that his memories were a bit messed up, even when he was young, I'm not sure why though. I guess that just makes him Sora." Kairi explained.

Zelda pondered her words for a moment.

"Has he ever changed from the power he's been given? I've heard that power can corrupt if you're not careful," she asked.

"He's been getting stronger lately, but he hasn't changed. He kept his promise..." Kairi sighed, smiling faintly.

Zelda smiled at her.

"You're in love with him, aren't you?"

The princess couldn't help but blush, her cheeks as brilliantly red as her hair. She stuttered and stammered for a response before eventually nodding her head. Her blushes managed to cease before she made a retort.

"And I'm guessing you're starting to get a crush on Riku."

Zelda whipped her head away, desperate to hide her reddened cheeks.

"S-Shut up!" she whined.

Laughter then filled the air as they got to their feet.

"Anyway, I think we've waited long enough. Let's get back to our boys before they do something stupid." Kairi laughed.

Zelda was about to respond when something made her stop. A pain wrapped around her heart and exploded in her chest. In agony she slumped to her knees and clutched herself, screams ripping through her lips so shrilly it was deafening. Kairi hurried to her side.

"Zelda! Zelda, what's wrong?!" she cried.

"Something's wrong... It hurts..." Zelda whimpered. "Someone's hurting...we have to help them...!"

Doing her best to lead her distraught friend Kairi took them out into the Lotus Forest and through to the Hedge Maze.

~( )~

They saw Sora standing before the Queen of Hearts, three boxes set before him with Alice nervously standing by his side, blue eyes wide while sapphires glinted in determination, the slight touch of a smirk making its way onto his face.

"Which do you choose? Pick one and you've picked the culprit, then it's off with their head!" The Queen snarled.

Sora glared at her but took a brave step forward. He spun his Keyblade and smacked it against the side of the centre box. In that instant a Heartless popped out of the box before disappearing again and becoming a swarm around him.

Skirts flying and cards scrambling, that's what happened next. Sora watched them all flee for their lives at the sight of the Heartless. He merely sliced through its neck and watched the heart it had taken float up into the sky. When he turned to the rest of the small army they leapt and struck, claws outstretched and desperate to reach their mark. Sora jumped up and performed an aerial dodge, bringing the blade down in a spark dive. Sensing the danger Kairi and Zelda leapt into the fray, beating Heartless senseless with everything they had while protecting Alice to the best of their ability.

"Sora!" Zelda called over the sound of slashing and shrieking. "Where are Riku and the others?"

Sora was silent for a moment as he took out another Heartless.

"They're all on the Gummi Ship, I think it's better to explain what happened if you see it yourself," he responded softly.

In agreement they continued to slay the Heartless until the last one faded away into nothingness.

In a matter of minutes they began to run towards the Gummi Ship, Alice in tow and Zelda leading the way with tears streaming down her face and a pained expression on her face.

~( )~

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	9. Chapter 9

I don't own Kingdom Hearts

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Chapter Nine

Poison and Attempted Kisses

Back at the Gummi Ship Riku was laid on his bed, sweat beaded down and stuck his silver hair to his forehead; his hands constantly clenched the sheets beneath him. Donald crouched over him, desperately casting Curaga after Curaga while Goofy paced the room back and forth.

"Nothing's working!" Donald sighed in exasperation.

"What can we do?" Goofy asked.

It was at that moment that Sora, Kairi and Zelda came running in.

"Riku!" Zelda cried out.

With tears streaming down her face she knelt down by his side and clasped his hand. Her eyes widened at the sight. Riku's shoulder was torn and bloody, red beads oozed out under the skin. She could only watch as he gritted his teeth every time the blood would seem to sizzle before it became burnt black. Wisps of black smoke slowly entered the air from the wound.

Zelda tore her eyes away. She couldn't look at it anymore. Without a word she turned back to everyone.

"What happened?" she demanded, her voice like venom.

Sora touched her shoulder and began his explanation.

"We were battling some Heartless in the Bizarre Room, along with some of those Night Warrior Nobodies. Riku was taking out one and made his way to dodge, none of us expected it to bite him. The moment it did, it vanished. We quickly brought him back here and he has been here ever since."

"Curagas are no good! We've tried Potions and Elixirs, but nothing's worked." Donald inputted.

"What do you think, Zelda?" Kairi asked, bringing order to the hysterics. "You're the expert on Night Warriors, surely you, Merlin and Aerith will be able to find something to save him."

Zelda sighed heavily, wiping her tears away with the back of her hand.

"Okay, you guys go and get into contact with everyone on Radiant Garden, and drop off Alice at Disney Castle. I'll stay with Riku."

With the plan agreed the group left Zelda and Riku alone.

~( )~

* * *

Zelda soaked a cloth and pressed it against Riku's sweating brow, her lip bleeding to bite back the tears that threatened to spill once again down her cheeks.

"Why did this happen? Why did it bite you, damn it!?" she whispered harshly.

"Got me…my guard was slack…I guess…" muttered Riku.

His eyes were blurred and uncertain as he gazed up at her. The girl gasped at his words.

"Riku! You should rest!" she gasped.

"And let my blood get poisoned while I sit back, doing nothing? I don't think so," he retorted. He then gave a small smile. "Plus it gives me a chance to do something…"

"What?" she asked, inching slightly closer.

"First, close your eyes…" he ordered.

Zelda did as he asked and waited. Even without her sight she could tell that he was getting slowly closer. Bringing himself up by his elbows so that he was level with her Riku drew closer. His lips were closing in, his breath warm against her mouth. She knew his intentions, she mimicked him.

The moment their lips were about to touch, a banging sounded outside the door. They quickly drew apart and Riku lay down again. Looking towards the entrance way they saw Donald and Goofy standing there.

"We've got through to Aerith, she wants to talk to you about it, since you're the expert on the Night Warriors." Goofy explained.

Zelda nodded her head, she didn't dare speak, fearing a stammer in her words. Slowly she got to her feet and made her way out the room, following behind the duck and dog. She stole a glance at the resting Riku, put her fingers to her lips, released and blew. After that she ran to catch up with the others.

~( )~

* * *

"Is everything going okay back on Radiant Garden, Leon?" Sora asked, arms folded in front of him.

"The Nobodies and Heartless are still roaming around, but they aren't causing trouble, it's more like...there's looking for something." Leon explained over the monitor. The others stood in the background silently.

"They could be looking for the Prince of Heart." Kairi offered. "He's pretty much got a bounty on his head right now."

Merlin nodded his head, leafing through a book.

"It is most likely, although I can't say who he is. Even from Ansem the Wise's reports, it mentions nothing about him."

Sora smiled to himself.

"Looks like Tron's going to be hacking the Grid," he laughed. "Maybe he can turn up something, or at least the name of his world before it was destroyed. Knowing Ansem, he'll have found something and hid it from even Xenmas."

* * *

It was at that moment that Zelda walked in with Donald and Goofy. The girl practically ran to the monitor and yelled for Aerith.

"Aerith! There's got to be something to help Riku! Tell me what you know!"

Aerith stepped to the screen.

"Okay, first you need to calm down. You're not going to be able to help Riku if you're panicking," she explained softly.

Zelda took a deep breath and relaxed, allowing the woman to continue.

"Okay, you first need to explain to me his symptoms. That will give us a place to start."

The girl explained his symptoms and waited as Aerith thought about a possible solution.

"Well, from what you say, I think you need a modified Elixir, with extra magic put into it. Though I think the only place you can find it is in Atlantica, the King's Triton might be able to help."

Sora nodded his head and made his way to the console.

"Thanks for the advice, and keep us posted with anything you find. We've dropped off Alice at Disney Castle so we'll make Atlantica our next stop. Gummi out."

The connection was cut off.

* * *

Sora turned to the others slowly, his brow furrowed in determination and his hand clutched around his silver crown chain.

"Any objections to going to Atlantica as our next destination?" he asked firmly.

Even if anyone wanted to disagree, his voice left no room for arguments.

"Sir, no, sir!" the group said in unison, their hands went up in a mock salute.

Zelda glanced at the doorway, a flush spread across her cheeks as she thought about what happened in Riku's room, what they nearly did. She didn't know whether he meant it, or if he was delusional from the poison. Either way it might her heart go so fast it was a drum in between her ears.

"We'll help you, Riku, no matter what," she whispered.

~( )~

Okay, bit of a mini chapter...interlude...whatever you want to call it.

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	10. Chapter 10

I don't own Kingdom Hearts

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Chapter Ten

Discoveries in Atlantica

Sora drove the Gummi Ship towards Atlantica, space flying past him through the windows as Goofy and Donald shot down enemy ships. He glanced over his shoulder and saw Kairi sitting nearby, her eyes trained on shooting down another Heartless; he blushed when their eyes met and snapped his head away before she saw his reddened cheeks.

His thoughts then drifted to Zelda. She had not left Riku's side since they started the journey for their next destination, not even to sleep. Sora and Kairi often brought her food, along with something for Riku; but Zelda was zoned out she rarely acknowledged them. They hated seeing her so distraught, but they understood, though possibly for different reasons.

Turning his attention back to the road ahead Sora spotted Atlantica only a minute away from touchdown.

"Approaching Atlantica. Brace for landing. Prepare to dive!" he called.

Water splashed up in front of them, bright blue entered their eyes and filled them to the brim. Bubbles floated up from small crevices and danced in front of the window. Kairi stared out as she watched the colourful streams of fish swim past the windows in undisguised awe. It was indeed an incredible sight to see.

"This world is amazing...!" she whispered.

Zelda came walking into the room, her movements slow and her feet dragging across the floor. There were dark shadows under her eyes that looked like two black gaping caverns with sunken sapphires in the centre of them. She sighed heavily but when she turned her eyes up to their destination, they widened and brightened with newfound hope and determination. A stunning smile spread across her face.

"What's the plan?" she asked.

Sora swung himself out of the pilot's seat.

"Okay, one or two of us need to stay here with Riku, while the rest of us need to head out and get what we need to help him," he explained.

"But is that really a good idea? What if something happens to Riku while we're gone?" Kairi asked.

They all then became quiet, unable to respond to the problem.

A voice broke into the silence.

"Then...don't split up... We'll all go..."

Everyone turned towards the doorway in surprise. They saw Riku leaning against the frame, clutching his shoulder with a pained smile on his face. Sora ran up to him and supported him as he led the way into the room.

"Riku, you idiot!" he yelled. "What on Destiny Island were you thinking?! You're going to make it worse!"

Riku laughed weakly.

"Sorry about that, but I'm not going to be left behind. I'll just take extra care. It's as simple as that. You know I'm going to follow you either way. So don't bother trying to stop me..."

His younger friend groaned in annoyance, he was wondering when he had become the adult and Riku the child. Sighing heavily Sora nodded his head.

"Fine, but you are not going anywhere alone, are we clear?" he ordered.

Riku only smiled at him in triumph.

~( )~

With the use of Donald's magic they were prepared and swimming through the waters of Atlantica with ease. Sora's dolphin-like tail flicked effortlessly behind him, his silver crown glinted brightly against his chest; his wound had turned a pale white as it finally reached its final phases of healing. His sapphire eyes glanced back at everyone behind him. Goofy and Donald had adopted their forms of a turtle and octopus. Kairi and Zelda resembled mermaids with their tails, Kairi's a light purple and Zelda's deep red. Meanwhile Riku trailed behind them with a tail similar to a shark's, with a silver and aqua green streak down the back; his shoulder continued to bleed blackened blood, smoking and hissing even in the salty water.

Goofy broke the silence.

"Any idea where we're meant to be headed?" he asked.

Zelda bolted forward, swimming past everyone and taking the lead.

"We're heading to the palace, where else would the King be? Do we have an Elixir we can modify?" she said firmly.

Sora pulled out an Elixir and handed it to her.

"We basically need to head to the palace and talk to King Triton, his trident should help us, it managed to reveal this world's Keyhole before, so it should have the power to help Riku," he explained.

Dodging past a school of fish they continued to make their way through the waters.

~( )~

After swimming for what seemed like an eternity the small group finally arrived at the gates of the palace, its great coral structure alight like fireflies flickering against a sapphire lake's surface. Sora took a deep breath and pushed the gates aside, then swam in, soon followed by the others. The silence around them was deafening, the only sound was the flicks of their tails as they swam closer to the throne room. Guards watched them pass but did nothing, knowing their association with the King.

When they finally arrived the group saw King Triton talking to Sebastian.

"Sebastian! King Triton!" Sora called, smiling.

The two of them turned and saw them floating in the doorway. The crab swam over.

"Sora, Donald, Goofy, welcome. It's good to see you but you've come at a bit of a bad time," he explained.

"Why? Did something happen?" Kairi asked.

King Triton shook his head.

"Some of those Nobody creatures came and stole my trident. We have no idea what it may be used for."

The group looked at one another before Zelda swam up to the front.

"We'll get it back for you," she offered. "But could you do something once you have it back?"

When the King made the motion to continue she gave her question.

"Our friend is seriously ill thanks to an attack from a new Nobody that's come around, the only thing that can help him is an Elixir that has been enhanced with your Triton's magic. Could you do that for us, please?"

King Triton nodded his head in agreement.

"Very well, bring back my trident and I will help you in any way you need."

"Hurry! Before they do something terrible with its power!" Sebastian urged.

With those words the group were away, Zelda and Riku trailing behind them.

~( )~

They swam through the water, relentless and kicking through the streams of bubbles that ran past them. None of them knew where they were going, but they followed their instincts, and the sense of darkness filling the water with potent energy.

Sora stopped before the scene of a sunken ship, a smile spread across his face as he remembered his time with Ariel and the others in his past adventures. A glint of gold near the hull of the ship caught his eye.

"Guys, this way."

He gestured for them to follow and drew out his Keyblade, a determined intent flickered in his eyes. The moment he saw the source his eyes brightened and his lips became a scowl.

Before him was a collection of Nobodies and Heartless, Night Warriors and Shadows adapted for the undersea world. Within the mass of darkness and silver was a black hooded figure, with a black fish tail swirling beneath the dark depths of their coat. The figure glanced over their shoulder and stared at them with hidden eyes.

"You've come. _He_ said you would..." they muttered. "Sora."

Sora swam forward, eyeing the creatures that bowed their heads, as though they were waiting for their master to give the word.

"Who are you? I recognise Larxene, but I know I've never seen you before!" he yelled. He was getting more and more tempted to strike, but he kept his composure.

"You want the trident?" they asked.

With hesitance he nodded his head.

"Then you must either come with me, or fight to get it back. Are you going to co-operate, or fight?" they said, bearing no emotion.

Sora didn't hesitate to slash through one of the Night Warriors, his eyes never left the hooded being.

"Does that answer your question?" he retorted firmly.

The figure turned away.

"So be it," they deadpanned. "Maybe you'll change your mind in the future. Until next time, Keyblade Master."

They then disappeared into a Corridor of Darkness.

~( )~

That was the signal that the Nobodies wanted. It was in that split second that they pounced. The group quickly set themselves into battle mode and readied their weapons. Riku did his best to fight back, despite his injury, not an easy feat with the strain of his shoulder. Goofy and Donald performed several double-team attacks, while Kairi cast a multitude of spells, favouring Thunderaga because of its intense reaction to the ocean.

Sora was slicing through enemies left, right and centre. He had gone into his Valour Form and was dual-wielding so he could hit more opponents at a faster pace. Power and light was sliding off his form like rain, oozing from every pore with his eyes flashing like sapphires.

He was concentrating so hard on fighting that he didn't spot a single Night Warrior slip away from the rest and make its way towards Riku...

~( )~

Riku gritted his teeth in pain, his Way of Dawn disappearing in a flash. His vision blurred, his motions sluggish. His shoulder was agony, he couldn't...take...anymore.

"I'm...at my limit..." he groaned.

He closed his eyes, allowing his body to float in the water. It happened the same time a Night Warrior approached him from behind.

Zelda turned and spotted it beginning to lower its blade upon Riku's prone form. Her instincts kicked in. Her heart went into overdrive. With as much power as she could muster she stormed through the water towards him at top speed.

"RIKU!" she cried.

She threw her body in front of his, her arms raised.

Everyone turned towards them. Their eyes filled with fear. The blade was coming down fast. Not even Sora would be able to reach them in time.

"No!"

Metal clashed against metal. Eyes widened at the sight before them. In Zelda's hands wasn't her sword, even though it looked similar. In its place was a Keyblade.

~( )~

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	11. Chapter 11

I don't own Kingdom Hearts

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Chapter Eleven

Growing Closer

Zelda gazed in wonder at the blade in her hands, her breath caught in her throat and her eyes widened at the sight. A large key, elegant and ornate, similar in design to her sword, with a gold hilt embedded with red jewels. It was beautiful; there were no other words to describe it. She would have continued to gaze at the weapon in awe, but she couldn't while there was a Nobody looming over her. So on instinct she slashed through its stomach and dragged Riku out of harm's way.

Once he was set to the side, she turned towards the offending creature, malicious intent glaring in her sapphire eyes.

"I'm going to send you to Hell for trying to hurt Riku!" she bellowed.

She followed her cry with a series of slashes and blows to the Night Warrior, her moves fuelled only by her anger and will to protect her friends.

It was only when all the Nobodies were destroyed that her anger finally subsided. The others gathered around her as her shoulders slumped and her Keyblade vanished. Kairi placed a hand on her shoulder and brought her upright.

"Are you okay?" she asked softly.

Zelda looked up slowly, her breathing deep and ragged, but there was a tired smile on her face.

"I'm...I'm okay. A bit out of it, but I'm okay," she answered.

Sora then came into the conversation, supporting Riku by having his arm draped across his shoulders. The trident was held in his free hand.

"Come on, let's head back to the palace. Then we can get Riku fixed up before heading to the next world."

Zelda nodded her head and with great weariness swam after the others.

~( )~

They returned to the palace only to be greeted by Sebastian, his large eyes wide and smiling.

"You got it back! Excellent! And not a moment too soon, we nearly had to send out the guards to do a full search of the ocean," he said. "Did you see who took it?"

"It looked like a member of the Organisation, but not someone we're familiar with." Sora explained. He then glanced at Riku. "But we really need to get the trident back to His Majesty, we need him to help us get Riku better."

Sebastian took a look at the oldest Keyblader and saw the sizzling wound on his shoulder, his eyes widened at the gruesome sight.

"Y-Yes! Right away! To the throne room, everyone!" he gasped, leading the way to the King.

~( )~

In the throne room they gathered around King Triton and Zelda presented the Elixir before him. He looked at the golden liquid and brought his trident down upon it, electricity shocking through it to make it bubble and glow.

"That should do it, but I suggest giving it to your friend soon. By the look of his wound, I would say he doesn't have long."

Sora nodded his head.

"Thank you for your help, we'll try to find out who is causing all this trouble."

Leading the way he continued to haul Riku out of the palace, quickly followed by the others as they made their way back to the Gummi Ship.

~( )~

Once they were back within the confines of their intergalactic vessel Riku was placed in his bed, the others left Zelda kneeling over him, clutching the Elixir to her breast as though it was her only life line.

"Please let this work..." she prayed. "Please..."

With trembling hands she poured the golden liquid into his mouth and got him to swallow. And then, she waited.

~( )~

Sora sat in front of the console, his finger tapped against the down key every time he looked through the reports Riku and Zelda had managed to salvage from Ansem's files back in Twilight Town. He scowled as he read through the information. There was Larxene, her profile was on screen loud and clear, but the other members who were causing trouble all had their hoods up and their data was encrypted.

Although he continued to stop on one figure. His sapphire eyes stared intently at them. He couldn't help but feel something familiar about them. The stance, the supposed weapon they used, it was far too much to be considered coincidental, if they continued to play in his mind over and over again.

"You must be HIM..." he muttered to himself. "But why do you want me? What is it about me that makes you want to capture me?"

The fact that it was the same person who killed that woman in his dreams made him shudder, that they could murder someone so easily, in front of her own children no less, in order to get what they wanted was unforgivable.

"No matter what, I will stop you."

He was brought out of his thoughts by Kairi entering the room, a tattered notebook in her hands.

"Sora?" she called softly.

The young Keyblader spun around in his chair and looked at the red-haired princess.

"Is something wrong, Kairi?" he asked.

Without a word she handed him the notebook.

"Sorry... I found it when I was looking through some old stuff. I think it's yours. I only looked at the first page, I swear!" she said in a hurry.

Sora placed a hand on her shoulder, his signature smile on his face.

"Kairi, it's fine. Thanks for finding it. I thought I lost this a long time ago."

Kairi looked at him as he began to leaf through the pages, a smile on his face. Her cheeks flushed every time he caught her staring at his profile.

"S-So..." she stammered out. "What's that book for?"

"You know I've always had these weird dreams, even before the Keyblade?" Sora answered. "Well, when I was younger I used to draw my dreams in this book, sometimes I hoped that if I put them down on something, I could make sense of it. Guess I should start using it again, huh?"

Kairi smiled at him. The idea that he would do something like that was sweet, she couldn't hold back a blush that spread across her cheeks. Shaking her head she turned towards the door.

"Anyway, I'm going to meet up with Donald and Goofy, Donald promised me that he would teach me some more spells. See you later, Sora."

She quickly disappeared through the door.

~( )~

In Riku's room his aqua eyes slowly opened. With blurred eyes he tried to focus on something. Chestnut brown, sapphire blue edged with crystal. A groan left his lips and a gasp entered the air.

"Riku!"

His eyes finally stopped being hazy and focused on the face before him, a smile touched his lips.

"Hey Zelda, been there long?" he greeted.

In that instant she flung her arms around his neck, crying tears of absolute joy.

"Thank goodness! Thank God! Hell, thank everyone!" she cheered. "I'm just so happy you're alive!"

Awkwardly Riku returned her embrace, his face buried in her hair.

"It'll take more than that to beat me. Thank you guys for saving me," he smiled.

He managed to get out the bed and shakily made his way over to the door. Zelda immediately rushed over to assist him.

"I'll help you! You're not completely recovered, so I'll be your assistant until you're back to normal!" she frowned, although her eyes were smiling.

They headed out the room and made their way to the cockpit, where their friends were waiting.

~( )~

Sora looked up when he saw Zelda and Riku enter the room, the older boy looking in better shape than he had in a while.

"I'm glad to see you back on your feet, Riku," he smiled.

The silver haired boy waved his hand dismissively.

"Don't get all mushy on me!" he retorted. Running a hand through his hair he continued. "So where's our next stop, Captain?"

Kairi clapped her hands happily.

"Agrabah! We need to see Jasmine, and it'll be nice to have a similar place to Destiny Islands to drop off on."

"Alright, next stop, Agrabah!" Sora cried as he set off at hyper speed.

~( )~

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	12. Chapter 12

I don't own Kingdom Hearts

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Chapter Twelve

Familiar Faces

Sora steered the ship to make its landing on Agrabah, where sand billowed up in small storms beneath them. They made their way off the ship and found themselves outside the gate to the city. The fifteen-year-old boy couldn't help but feel a sense of anxiety in the pit of his stomach as he glanced over his shoulder towards the great span of desert behind him, his eyes lay upon where he knew the Cave of Wonders presided. He felt a hand touch his shoulder, his blue eyes met Kairi's.

"Are you alright, Sora? You're spacing out again. Come on, the others are already inside the city," she asked.

Sora saw the others waving him inside, smiling and laughing. The corners of his mouth turned up slightly as he wrapped an arm around Kairi's shoulders.

"I'm fine, come on, let's go."

They all then walked inside.

~( )~

The Bazaar bustled with people and life. Shouts of the sellers rang in the air and the smell of spices and fruit tingled inside their mouths as they walked past. Sora's arms folded behind his head as he strolled past the stalls, the others had fallen behind because of their curiosity of the new world. Zelda was especially distracted as she clung to Riku's arm with a smile on her face; he couldn't blame her for her inquisitive nature in the new surroundings.

Kairi got a hold of his arm and pointed towards the palace.

"Are Aladdin and Jasmine going to be in there? I can't see them wondering around out here," she asked.

Sora tapped his chin in thought.

"Well, they're either going to be at the palace, or at Aladdin's house."

"Let's head to the palace then, it's easier to find anyway." Zelda quipped from where she was standing.

Sora began to lead the way.

"Follow me!" he yelled as he dashed through the throng of people.

~( )~

It wasn't long before they arrived outside the palace gates, the sand coloured stone glistened in the sun and the clear blue sky emphasised its radiance. Sora nodded his head in appreciation before heading towards the gates. Immediately he noticed Aladdin and Jasmine standing outside.

"Aladdin! Jasmine! Long time no see!" he greeted with a wide smile on his face.

The couple turned towards them, their eyes wide in surprise.

"Sora! Donald! Goofy! It's been a while." Aladdin smiled.

Jasmine tossed her hair over her shoulder and linked her arm through her boyfriend's as they watched the group approach. A sense of nervous anticipation began to fill her insides when she saw the look in Kairi's eyes.

"I have a feeling that this isn't just a friendly visit. What's wrong?" she asked.

They quickly explained the situation and Jasmine cast her brown eyes over into the distant desert.

"If the others are going to be at Disney Castle, I'll go and join them. But I can't leave at the moment, there seems to be lots of Nobodies lurking around, not to mention two people from the Organisation popping up around the Cave of Wonders."

Sora immediately tensed as he heard Zelda ask her question.

"Was either of them a woman with blonde hair who uses knives for fighting?"

Aladdin shook his head.

"Neither of them took their hoods off, I think one of them had blue eyes but it was really dark so I can't be sure," he explained. "So, can you help us out?"

The group nodded their heads and accepted the task.

"Alright, Donald and Goofy can take Jasmine back to Disney Castle while we go into the Cave of Wonders and put a stop to them." Riku said.

With their plan decided the group split up. Donald, Goofy and Jasmine climbed into the Gummi Ship and took off while Sora, Kairi, Riku and Zelda began to make their way towards the Cave of Wonders, Aladdin leading the way.

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After a quick trip on the magic carpet they stood outside the tiger's mouth. Riku's eyes narrowed as his senses went into overdrive, seeking any form of darkness he could find. He soon picked up two signatures coming from the deeper depths of the Cave of Wonders. His brows furrowed when he saw that they weren't moving.

"Something's not right..." he muttered. "They aren't moving, it's like they're waiting for us. I think we're going to end up walking into a trap."

Sora nodded his head in agreement, but knew that there wasn't any other option.

"That may be true, but we don't have much of a choice."

Without another word he climbed through into the tiger's mouth. The others sighed and followed after him, worrying about his headstrong approach to walking into the very hands of the Organisation.

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Walking through the dark caverns the group saw the torches light up with blazing flames that flickered against the shadows. Sora led the way through the passages, his jaw seemed set, his teeth gritted in his mouth. His hands would clench and release briefly as he strode forward with purpose blazing in his eyes. As they descended down into the cave's catacombs he could see two black coats standing in the distance, near where he remembered Agrabah's Keyhole to reside. It was clear that they were waiting for them.

Without hesitance Sora stepped forward into the main room.

"Why are you causing trouble across the worlds?" he asked firmly.

A sly smile seemed to cross one of the members' lips.

"Wouldn't you like to know, Sora?" they smirked.

The Keyblader's brow creased slightly, his lips contorted in confusion; the voice wasn't familiar to him, but he did see how Riku tensed at the sound of their voice.

"Who are you?" he hissed. "Who are you _both_?"

A smirk could be seen beneath their hood before they tossed it back to reveal a head of dark grey hair, with some of it hanging in front of one of their greyish blue eyes. A boy only slightly older than them with a lexicon under his arm stood before them.

"I am Zexion, the Cloaked Schemer."

Zelda glared up at the other Organisation coat.

"And you? Who are you?" she growled angrily, her Keyblade appearing in her hand and extended between them.

With a withering sigh they pulled their hood away. Black layered hair tumbling over their shoulders, an elegant, feminine face, and startling sapphire blue eyes. Zelda could barely bite back a gasp, her eyes widened at the sight of her.

"I am the commander of the Night Warriors. I am the Midnight Sword," she said. "I am Dexzla."

She and Zelda were identical... She was her Nobody.

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